Rising To The Surface
by emmareden
Summary: Emaria vs Emison. Emily revealing her crush to Aria. Aria slowly realising that maybe she feels the same. Then drama when Ali resurfaces. Set early season 1. Ongoing.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So there's not enough Emaria out there so I thought I'd contribute! Enjoy!**

Aria was more than happy to have her friend over. Her parents hadn't even cared it was a school night, considering the circumstances. Emily had been spending a lot of time at her friends' house after her parents less than understanding reactions to her coming out. Her friends had been great, better than she ever thought they'd be.

Still, she couldn't help but be self-conscious when Aria yawned and announced she was going to change into her pyjama's. Emily made some mumbling excuse about needing the bathroom and disappeared. Aria frowned and opened her mouth to protest but Emily was already out the door.

"Em, what are you doing?" Aria asked.

Emily was pulling a blanket over the floor, "I was just…going to sleep down here."

Aria rose her eyebrows, "Uh, why? You practicing to be on survivor or something?"

Emily blushed, "I just thought… You know, it would be more comfortable for you…"

"Em," Aria took Emily's hand and pulled her off the ground, "Nothing's changed. We've slept in the same bed a thousand times, it's not a big deal."

Emily smiled weakly, "Thanks, Aria… It's just… I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable."

Aria rolled her eyes, "As if you could! Besides, if I catch you staring I'll just take it as a compliment," she teased.

Emily laughed quietly, "Yeah, yeah."

"It must have been hard though," Aria thought, "keeping your feelings a secret for so long… And the change room's, the sleepovers… I'm just sorry we didn't know and made you uncomfortable."

Emily shrugged, "It was… I guess I really didn't want to like girls…so yeah, the change rooms sucked because I couldn't escape it. I liked looking at girls but I didn't like that I liked looking at girls," she frowned, "If that make sense."

"It does," Aria nodded, "But you know, it doesn't bother any of us. You're still the same Emily as always."

Emily smiled, "Thanks, you guys have been great. Really."

"Did you really think we wouldn't be?" Aria asked curiously.

"I don't know," Emily admitted, "I think maybe I was projecting my own feelings of not accepting it onto you guys. I just didn't want to lose you."

Aria's eyes widened, "Never, Em," she wrapped her arms around her friend.

Emily returned the embrace.

"So, is there an actual crush or…?" Aria smiled.

Emily blushed, "No," she lied.

Aria quirked an eyebrow, "Okay. So why the blushing?"

Emily cursed internally as her blush only deepened, "I don't know."

"Come on, it must suck having crushes and not being able to gush over them with your friends. Listening to us talk about all the guys at school… " Aria shrugged, looking at her friend sympathetically.

"Well…yeah," Emily admitted.

Aria smiled, "There totally is someone. You have that look in your eye."

Emily shrugged, "It's nothing. The joys of being gay and being surrounded by straight girls."

"Oh, yeah, that must suck," Aria frowned, "But come on, you can still crush, right? It's no different than me being in love with Ryan Gosling," she smiled.

Emily smiled, "Right… but you don't have to see him at school every day."

Aria nodded, "True. So, there is someone! Come on, you know I can keep a secret."

"Well, so can I!" Emily said with finality.

"Oh come on, Em, you've been holding it in for like ever, don't you – "

"It's you," Emily blurted.

Aria blinked, shocked for a moment before she smiled, "Me?"

Emily remained silent, staring down at her hands.

"Em?" Aria watched her friend, "Oh, come on. I don't mind, Em. You're my friend," she shrugged, "So, you have good taste."

"Sorry," Emily mumbled, still staring at her hands.

Aria rolled her eyes and took Emily's hands in her own, "Seriously, it's okay. It's natural to get crushes – "

"On one of your best friends?" Emily asked.

"Sure," Aria shrugged, "I think it's natural. I mean, we're close…and I am pretty awesome," she grinned.

Emily let herself laugh, "Yeah, yeah."

Aria smiled, "Hey, but why me? I mean, you're just as close with Spence and Hanna…"

Emily blushed again, "Aria…" she sighed, "I don't know. You're just…different."

"Different," Aria repeated, "Different, how?"

Emily grumbled a little, "Well, I don't know… you've always been like the least judgmental. You're smart and loyal and funny and cute…" she stopped.

Aria bit back a smile, "Well, thanks, Em," she nudged her friend gently.

Emily looked at her friend, "It really…doesn't bother you?"

Aria shrugged, "Nope. It's totally cool. I don't want anything to change between us, Em. You're my friend and I love you, always will."

Emily nodded, "I love you too. Um, I can still sleep on the floor…"

Aria pushed her friend, "Jeez, Em. How many times do I need to say it? Nothing changes. Unless," she thought, "it makes you uncomfortable?"

Emily thought about it, "No, it doesn't," she mumbled.

"Cool," Aria smiled and pulled her friend onto the bed as she climbed under the covers.

Emily followed suit and tried to get comfortable without invading her friends space.

"I never noticed how small your bed was before," Emily grumbled.

Aria laughed, "Well, stop squirming around and maybe it won't seem so small."

"Well, not everyone is as tiny as you, this is probably like a king size to you," Emily turned to face her friend again.

"Hey!" Aria pushed at her friend, "I can't help being so short, you know."

Emily bit back a smile, "I like that you're so small," she bit her tongue as soon as she said it.

Aria's lips curled into a smile, "Oh, really?"

Emily shrugged, "It's kinda cute," she admitted.

Aria smiled, "Good to know."

Emily closed her eyes before she could say anything else to embarrass herself. Aria smiled and watched her friend for a moment. She looked peaceful falling asleep, pretty too. Aria wondered if kissing a girl was any different than kissing a guy. She yawned, shook the thought out of her head and closed her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Aria hadn't blabbed to Spencer or Hanna; she hadn't even considered it. It was Emily's business and if she wanted them to know, she'd tell him. Truth be told, Aria felt a little guilty for pushing her friend into admitting her feelings. She'd had no way of knowing it would be her. She really didn't mind that Emily had a crush on her.

Emily was one of her best friends. She was sweet. It wasn't like she'd ever try anything or make her uncomfortable in any way. She wasn't like that.

"You guys wanna come over tonight?" Hanna asked as the four friends ate lunch together.

"Sure," Spencer agreed.

Aria nodded, "Sounds good."

Emily nodded, "Ok," she stood up, "I better go. Swim practice. I'll see you tonight."

"Is she alright?" Hanna asked as Emily left.

"I don't know, she's been quiet," Spencer shrugged, "Aria?"

Aria met their expectant gazes, "I don't know..."

"Well, you spend the most time with her," Hanna pushed, "How is she when it's just the two of you?"

"She's fine, I think. I mean, things are still tense with her parents… she is dealing with a lot, guys. It's going to take time," Aria offered.

"Yeah… I guess," Hanna nodded, "I wish they'd just get over it already."

Spencer raised an eyebrow, "It's not that simple, Han."

"Of course it is," Hanna argued, "She's gay, not a serial killer."

"I know that," Spencer stressed, "But I bet my parents wouldn't exactly be thrilled if it was me. It doesn't mean it's right, it's crap, but some people are just like that."

"I don't think my mum would care," Hanna shrugged, "Disconditional love or whatever."

"It's unconditional, Han," Spencer smiled.

Aria laughed quietly, "I don't think my mum would mind too much either," she mused, "I don't know about my dad though. I'm sure Em's will come around with time though… right?"

Her friends smiled uncertainly.

"Sure… I just hope it doesn't take much longer," Hanna said, "It's not fair."

"No, it's not," Aria agreed.

* * *

Emily read a magazine on her bed when there was a knock on her door.

"I thought you were going out tonight?" her mum asked.

Emily shrugged, "I'm not feeling well."

"Oh. Well, okay," her mum closed the door.

Emily sighed; that was probably the nicest conversation she'd had with her mum in days.

* * *

"She didn't call you?" Hanna asked, "She texted me saying she was sick or something."

Aria frowned, "Oh. She was fine at school," she thought aloud.

Hanna shrugged, "I don't know. I thought she would have texted you. You guys are kinda attached at the hip these days."

"Yeah… You know, I might head over and check on her. Just in case," Aria pulled up her things, "If everything's all good and she is just sick, I'll come back."

"Do you want us to come with?" Spencer asked, making a move to get up.

Aria shook her head, "Nah, it's okay. I think it's easier for her to talk one or one. You know," she paused, "She really thought we'd all turn on her."

Hanna frowned, "But she knows we love her, right? I mean, I know you guys talk, but when it's all of us, she's so quiet."

Aria nodded slowly, "I know, that's why I want to check on her. I mean, I thought she knew… but I don't know. I feel like she's avoiding us."

Spencer quirked an eyebrow, "She doesn't seem to avoid you."

Aria smiled a little, "Yeah, I guess. Anyway, I'll text you, okay?"

* * *

Emily didn't hear the knock on the door with her earphones in as she read a book on her bed. It wasn't until an earphone was pulled out of her ear that she yelped and turned around to see her friend.

"Someone's jumpy," Aria laughed, "And you don't look very sick."

Emily shrugged as she closed her book, "Sorry, didn't hear you," she mumbled.

Aria flopped down onto the bed beside her friend, "Why didn't you come to Hanna's, Em?"

"I'm just tired," Emily said.

It was true, Emily did look tired. Still, Aria didn't buy it.

"Right," Aria nodded, "So… you're not avoiding us?"

Emily frowned, "I'm not avoiding anyone, Ar."

"Okay," Aria smiled, "It's just the others have noticed you've been quiet lately. They're worried. So am I."

Emily sighed, "I'm okay, really. I'm just not sleeping so well, that's all. You guys are great, it really isn't anything personal, I'm just – "

"Tired," Aria finished with a smile, "Alright, I believe you, Em. How are things going with your parents?"

"Better," Emily replied, "Now they just pretend I never said anything."

Aria rolled her eyes, "They just need time, they'll come around."

"Yeah, maybe," Emily shrugged, "Hey, you should go back to the sleepover. Don't worry about me, really."

Aria shrugged, "It's cool, I'm sure they can survive without me."

Emily thought about protesting but smiled instead, "Thanks."

"You wanna watch a movie or something?" Aria asked.

"Yeah, but I don't have any of those black and white one's," Emily joked.

Aria nudged her friend, "Oh well, colour will have to do, I guess," she teased, "Trust me, your collection is infinitely better than Hanna's."

Emily laughed as she rifled through her dvd's and threw one in the dvd player, "I really am tired, you know. I might fall asleep."

Aria smiled, "No worries, I'll poke you if start snoring."

"I don't snore!" Emily pushed her friend.

"That's what you think," Aria snickered.

Emily rolled her eyes as she put her head down on the pillow.

Aria settled comfortably next to her and it was barely twenty minutes before her friend was asleep beside her. Aria smiled and pulled the covers over them both. She turned the volume down a little so not to wake her friend.

When the credit's finally rolled, she looked at the clock and figured there was no use going home this late. She switched the television off before climbing back into the bed.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3.**

"So, whose idea was this camping thing anyway?" Hanna grumbled as they trekked through the woods.

"Oh come on," Spencer exclaimed, "Fresh air. No parents, no school, no homework!"

"No cell phone reception," Hanna groaned as she waved her phone around.

"Dad used to take us camping as kids sometimes," Aria commented, "I haven't been for ages. It will be fun!"

"Yeah, yeah," Hanna grumbled.

"The fresh air is nice," Emily took a deep breath of it in, "Invigorating."

Aria came to a stop in the middle of an empty clearing.

"Really?" Hanna looked around, "Great. Who knows how to put up a tent?"

Spencer shrugged, "It can't be that hard. Hand me the instructions."

Aria handed them over, "I think I remember… kind of."

* * *

"It's freezing," Hanna complained as she warmed her hands by the fire, "Why couldn't we just go stay in a hotel somewhere?"

"Because hotels cost a fortune," Aria shrugged.

"Well, what about a game?" Emily suggested.

"Truth or dare?" Spencer suggested.

"Truth," Hanna said, "I'm not doing any dares in this place."

"Agreed," Aria shrugged.

Spencer looked around the dark forest and sighed, "Yeah, fine, same."

Emily hesitated, "Truth."

Spencer turned to Hanna, "Who has you acting all gooey eyed lately?"

Hanna blushed, "Gooey eyed? As if."

Spencer rolled her eyes, "Oh come on, you've always got that goofy grin on your face."

"I'm not…" Hanna sighed, "It's this guy in my math class. Caleb."

"Caleb Rivers?" Spencer asked, "That guy with the long hair? Isn't he like a dealer?"

"No!" Hanna exclaimed, "Not in drugs anyway. He's always swapping phones with people, he's doing some techy stuff I guess. Anyway, he's pretty hot."

"Yeah, if you like that dark, mysterious thing," Spencer shrugged.

"Go for it, he's hot," Aria agreed.

Emily focussed on cooking her marshmellow over the fire perfectly when she looked up to see the others looking at her, "If you like him, try and spend some time with him," she offered.

"Hey Em?" Hanna asked suddenly.

"Uh, yeah?" Emily asked, suddenly growing nervous.

"So, you're like gay, right?" Hanna asked.

Spencer and Aria rolled her eyes.

"That's not exactly a truth, Hanna. Old news," Spencer raised an eyebrow.

"I haven't asked the truth bit yet," Hanna grumbled, "Have you like kissed a girl? Cause how do you know …"

"That's dumb. Nobody asks you that if you're straight," Aria said, "I mean, if you're straight but you haven't kissed a guy yet, nobody says how do you know if you've never kissed a guy?"

Spencer nodded, "Point."

"Okay, okay, I didn't mean to offend. You're right, I guess," Hanna nodded, "But that doesn't answer the question."

All eyes were on Emily and she felt her cheeks heat up.

"Well, I have, yes," she said quietly.

Hanna lent forward eagerly, "Who?"

Spencer's interest was piqued too as she watched her friend.

Aria bit her lip; she hadn't known this information either.

Emily hesitated, "Um…" she sighed, "Ali."

All three girls looked surprised.

"Really?" Hanna was the first to talk, "Were you guys – "

"No," Emily shook her head, "It wasn't like that."

"So… story?" Hanna prompted, earning a glare from Aria.

Emily sighed, "I liked her, okay? And I guess this one time in the library we were talking and I just…kissed her."

"Brave," Hanna replied, sounding impressed.

"Stupid," Emily shot back.

Hanna shrugged, "You liked someone. You made the move. I think it's brave. How did Ali…react?"

Emily shrugged, looking at her feet, "Like Ali. She told me she'd keep it a secret, which I guess she did but she was always hinting at stuff, even in front of you guys but in her subtle, Ali way."

"You never needed to keep it a secret Em," Aria smiled.

"Yeah, well, I know that now," Emily replied, "Anyway, who's next?"

* * *

"You never told me about Ali," Aria stated as they entered their tent, leaving Spencer and Hanna in the other tent.

Emily shrugged as she rolled out her sleeping bag, "Yeah, well…"

Aria watched her friend curiously, "Sorry, it's just… you've told me a lot, it surprised me that you hadn't mentioned it. I mean, it's fine, you don't have to tell me everything."

Emily sighed as she lay down, "It was just… intense," she paused as she felt Aria's eyes were on, "I was kind of in love with her."

Aria's eyebrows shot up, "Wow. You were… wow."

Emily avoided her friends gaze, "She knew I was," she said quietly, "And she was a … " she shrugged.

Aria squinted at her friend, "A bitch?" she guessed.

Emily shrugged, "Yeah," she said softly.

"She used it against you, didn't she?" Aria asked.

"Yeah," Emily repeated, "She did. She was… I don't know, she was so confusing. Sometimes she made me feel like there was something there but," she shrugged, "there wasn't. She just… was manipulative, you know that."

Aria nodded, "Sure, but using your feelings like that…"

"Yeah, well, she's no you," Emily said before biting her tongue.

Aria smiled,"Em, I'd never do that to you… at least, not intentionally… if I ever do, please tell me because – "

"You don't," Emily interrupted, "You're just the same as always. It's nice."

"Maybe Hanna was right about camping, it's freezing," Aria pulled her sleeping bag tighter.

"Or maybe we should have checked the weather report," Emily laughed, "I'll go see if there are any more blankets in the car."

Before Aria could protest, Emily had unzipped the tent and set off for the car. Aria followed her out with a torch, meeting her at the car.

"Any left?" she asked.

Emily turned around, "A couple. Looks Spence and Hanna took most of them but we've got a couple left."

Aria nodded, almost disappointed. It took her a moment to realise why. She'd kind of wanted an excuse to move closer to Emily and it wasn't just due to the cold weather.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Another chapter for your pleasure. For those who are getting impatient, next chapter things do go down, so fear not, it's not far away! I've got the next two chapters done so I'll post them over the next couple of days! Let me know if you have any suggestions or what more you want to see, etc, always happy to hear from you :) thanks for reading!**

**Chapter 4.**

Aria thought about what Emily had said about Alison. It didn't surprise her that Alison would be such a bitch about it. It wasn't that that was bothering her so much. Though, of course it did piss her off. It was nothing short of cruel to use someone's feelings against them like that.

The part that was really confusing her was her own reaction when Emily had spoken about her feelings towards Ali. She'd felt this tug in her gut, an increase in her heartbeat, this sadness in her chest, this… jealousy.

Her thoughts were interrupted with a pillow to the face.

"Earth to Aria," Emily laughed as she rolled up her sleeping bag, "You totally zoned out, you alright?"

Aria shrugged, "Sure, you know me and mornings don't really get along," she smiled.

"I noticed," Emily teased gently, "I think we're leaving in like an hour. Even Hanna's up."

"No way," Aria sounded surprised.

Emily laughed, "Yep, there's already some breakfast cooked if you want something."

Aria groaned, "Jeez, you guys spoil me. Sorry, I'll pack up the tent, okay?"

"It's cool, there's plenty of dishes to do," Emily grinned, "I'll see you out there," she said before unzipping the tent and climbing out.

* * *

"You want me to drive?" Aria offered.

Emily shrugged, "I'm fine. I don't mind driving too much, it clears my mind."

Aria smiled, "Okay, well let me know you if you get tired, okay?"

Emily nodded.

"Hey, Em," Aria asked, "When did you realise… you were gay? I mean, was it because you fell for Ali? Or was it before that? How did you…know?"

Emily was only mildly surprised at the question, "Uh, well I guess that's when it was cemented in my mind, when I admitted to myself how I felt about her. But before that… I'm not sure how to explain it."

Aria nodded, "Right," she mused, "So, was it like you were physically attracted or emotionally attracted or – "

"You have a lot of questions today," Emily laughed, "I think it was both? I mean, before you ever liked a guy, didn't you just…know?"

Aria thought about it for a moment, "I guess."

"Hey, we got any of those chips left?" Emily asked.

Aria dug down at her feet and pulled out a bag of chips, offering the pack to Emily. Emily took a couple and threw them in her mouth.

"What's with all the questions, anyway?"

Aria shrugged, "Nothing. Just trying to understand, that's all. You kinda get your head bitten off the moment you ask a question like this online."

Emily turned to her, quirking an eyebrow, "You asked online?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, I get it. Or I think I do, but it's just interesting to hear about it," Aria explained, "But people online can be really mean."

Emily nodded, "They can," she agreed, "I think there's a difference between asking those questions ignorantly and not really wanting to understand the answer and actually trying to…like, educate yourself."

Aria bit her lip, "Exactly!" she exclaimed.

"I don't mind. I know you're not doing it out of spite or cruelty or anything," Emily smiled, "You don't have to go online, Aria, you can ask me whatever you want."

Aria chuckled, "Thanks, Em."

"Have we got anything to drink left? Those chips are too salty," Emily asked, licking her lips.

Aria turned around and dug through the backseat.

"Be careful, would you?" Emily asked.

Aria grabbed the drink and pulled back, "Coke or…marshmellows?"

Emily laughed, "Definitely marshmellows."

* * *

Aria hauled the last of her belongings up the stairs and chucked them onto her floor.

"That's everything, right?" Emily asked.

"Yeah, that's it. Thanks," Aria smiled, "And thanks for driving."

"No worries," Emily replied, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Aria hugged her friend goodbye and went back to her room. She turned on some music and started unpacking. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Mum, you scared me," Aria said.

"Music," Ella said loudly.

Aria grinned and turned it down, "Sorry."

"How was your trip?"

"Great," Aria answered.

"Well, what did you do?" Ella asked.

"Just hung out," Aria shrugged.

Ella rolled her eyes, "Right," she started helping Aria fold her clothes, "Were there any…boys on this camping trips?"

Aria frowned, "No… I told you it was just me and the girls."

"Oh, okay," Ella sounded like she didn't believe her.

"Why?" Aria asked.

"Well, for one you can't stop smiling… I thought maybe there was boy there you liked," Ella offered.

Aria bit her lip, "There was no boy, mum."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Congrats, Em!"

Emily smiled but blushed at the attention. She loved winning; of course she did, but the attention got a bit much sometimes. It was always a relief to see her friends' turn up at these things. She liked the team, but her friends' were her safe place.

"Guys, over here," she waved them over.

"Hey, superstar," Hanna hugged her friend.

Emily rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah," she mumbled.

Aria and Spencer followed with their congratulations.

"Didn't you just win like some big thing, why aren't you partying with the rest of the team?" Hanna nodded to the rest of the team who were getting louder by the minute.

Emily shrugged, "Things on the team are…" she shrugged again.

Aria frowned, "I thought you loved the team?"

"I do," Emily said quickly, "They're great. It's just…" she sighed, "This girl asked me out and I said no and it's all kinda awkward."

"Which girl?" Hanna leaned in, eager for the gossip.

Spencer was curious too.

"Paige," Emily pointed her out.

Hanna looked over her shoulder, "She seems okay, why'd you say no? You don't like her?"

"She's fine, I guess," Emily thought, "I just don't want to see someone on the team."

"Or maybe you've already seen her nak – "

Emily swatted at the blonde, "Don't even," she laughed.

"God, Hanna," Spencer rolled her eyes at her friends lack of restraint.

Hanna rubbed her arm where her friend hit her, "What? I'm just saying, it's like a total advantage, right? The locker rooms and – "

"Oh god," Emily groaned, "Can you not make me sound like some creepy perve?"

Hanna rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, I know you're too nice for that."

Aria remained uncharacteristically quiet.

* * *

"Oh come on, have we all taken an oath of celibacy I don't know about?" was Hanna's response when Aria announced that she'd turned down Noel Kahn a few days later.

Aria glared at her, "We don't have to go out with anyone who asks, Hanna."

Hanna shrugged.

"But you did have a massive crush on him?" Spencer queried.

"I guess I don't anymore," Aria offered.

"You guess?" Hanna tutted as the bell rang.

"I gotta go, test in history. Wish me luck," Spencer swung a bag over her shoulder.

"As if you need it," Hanna replied as her friend grinned.

"Luck, Spence," Aria smiled.

"So, is there someone new then?" Hanna pressed.

Aria sighed; she'd hoped the conversation over, "Not really."

Hanna watched her friend, "Then why are you blushing and fidgeting?"

Aria stopped fidgeting in her seat, "I'm not."

"You're a terrible liar," Hanna put her chin a hand, "Can you just tell me who the new guy is?"

Aria chewed on her lip, "Han, it's complicated. Can we just…"

Hanna frowned, "How complicated can it be?" she wondered, "I mean I like the bad boy, Spencer's into that weird Toby kid, Emily was in love with Alison… I don't think there's anything that can really shock me anymore."

Aria had to laugh at that, "I guess that's sorta true. It's just… it's not what you would expect."

Hanna rolled her eyes, "I don't like riddles, Aria. I'm not a detective. What, have you joined Em's team?" she joked.

Aria's cheek's burnt deeper against her will.

"Oh!" Hanna stopped laughing, "Well, that's cool. Why is that a big deal? We don't treat Emily any different, why did you think we'd treat you any different?"

Aria bit her lip, "It's not just that, Han. I think I like her."

Hanna's eyes widened, "Em? You like Emily!?"

Aria nodded meekly.

"Jeez, why don't you tell her then!? You two would be sooo cute and I wouldn't even have to get all protective because you're both – "

"Hanna," Aria groaned, "I can't just tell her."

"Why? You're hot. Who knows, maybe she likes you too."

"It's not that, I know she likes me but…oh," she clapped a hand to her mouth.

"You know she likes you!? You guys seem to be keeping a lot of secrets lately."

"Um, she told me a while ago she has a crush on me," Aria mumbled.

"So then why won't you tell her!?" Hanna frowned, "Am I missing something?"

Aria sighed, "It's just… you know she liked Ali. And Ali was a total cow to her… playing around with her feelings… I don't want to do that."

Hanna quirked an eyebrow, "Then don't? You like her. She likes you. It's that simple. You're not Ali."

"Yeah, but I've never liked a girl before," Aria pressed, "What if it's just a – "

"If you say phase, I'm going to hit you," Hanna said seriously, "Come on. You know if you like someone. Isn't any crush a phase unless you act on it and it becomes something?"

Aria blinked, "Uh… that's pretty profound, Han."

Hanna looked proud of herself, "People make things more complicated than they need to be. Just be honest and if you're worried about the whole girl thing, take it slow. Or go online," she shrugged.

Aria couldn't help but laugh, "You're right," she admitted, "Just don't tell Spencer yet, okay? I'll tell her myself."

Hanna grinned, "No worries," she stood up, swinging her bag over her shoulder, "Say hey to Em for me."

Aria panicked, "Hang on, aren't we going to get coffee?"

Hanna shrugged, "You two go. I get the feeling you won't miss me."

Aria bit back a smile.

* * *

"You're quiet," Emily noted as she sipped on her coffee.

Aria bit her lip, "Oh, just thinking," she said absent mindedly.

Emily smiled, "Oh. Anything interesting going on in that head of yours?"

"Well," Aria started, hesitating, "Sort of."

Emily waited, tilting her head slightly when her friend didn't continue, "Well, don't overwhelm me with details there."

Aria smiled sheepishly, "Sorry," she offered, taking a deep breath, "I just need to talk to you about something."

Emily nodded, her brow furrowing in concern, "Sounds ominous… Is everything okay?"

"So, you know you're like my best friend… and we've been spending a lot of time together lately. I mean, more than usual – "

"Oh!" Emily ducked her head sheepishly, "I know what this is about."

Aria blinked, "You do?"

"I'm sorry," Emily began to apologise, "I've taken monopoly on you. You don't get to hang out with Hanna and Spencer enough. I'm being too – "

Aria laughed, "Emily, stop," she put her hands on her friends, "That's not what I'm saying. At all."

"Really?" Emily looked relieved, "Well, that's good to know."

Aria chuckled, "You could never overcrowd me, Em. I actually… I like you."

Emily smiled, "Cool, I was worried…"

Aria rolled her eyes, "No, that's not what I meant," she tried again, "I mean, over the last few weeks… I feel like we've gotten closer and I've developed…feelings for you. I like, like you."

Emily was shocked, "Uh… no, you don't," she said dumbly.

Aria hadn't known what to expect, but it wasn't that, "What? Em – "

Emily stood up, "I have to go."

"What? Em, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," Aria protested uselessly.

"You didn't, it's fine. I gotta go," Emily rushed out the door, leaving her friend confused.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Thoughts? Opinions? Suggestions? Thanks for reading! :)**

**Chapter 6**

"Anyone seen Em today?" Hanna asked as she joined her friends for lunch.

Aria shrugged.

"No, she must be out sick," Spencer assumed, "You haven't heard from her?" the question was directed at Aria.

Aria shook her head, "Nah, I haven't," she said honestly.

They chatted idly until the bell rang. Aria stood up quickly but felt a hand at her back. She turned around.

"Wait up," Hanna frowned, "What happened yesterday?"

"Nothing," Aria said distractedly, "I've got English so – "

Hanna wasn't going to let it go so easily, "Well, did you tell her?"

Aria bit her tongue a moment before sighing, "Yeah."

"And?" Hanna prompted.

"She just…left," Aria shrugged, "I don't know what happened. I told her I liked her and she just… bolted."

"She ran?" Hanna repeated, "But I thought she liked you."

"So did I," Aria sighed, "I don't know. I freaked her out, I guess."

Hanna thought, "Maybe she's just scared of getting hurt. All that stuff about Ali…"

Aria nodded, "Yeah maybe."

"Have you tried calling her?"

"It just goes to voicemail," Aria bit her lip, "I mean, she can't skip school forever, right?"

"Not with her mum, no," Hanna smiled, "Just give her some time."

* * *

Emily looked at her phone and cleared the missed calls. Again. She lay back on her bed, wishing she could stop her brain from ticking over. She kept replaying the words that Aria had said. Maybe she had misunderstood. She couldn't believe this was happening again.

But it wasn't, she told herself. This wasn't anything like Ali. Aria wasn't anything like Ali. She cursed herself for being so dramatic; it wasn't like her.

Her phone rung again. She sighed before picking it up. Hanna. Reject.

"Rude."

Emily turned around to see her friend standing in the doorway.

"Your mum let me in," Hanna offered, putting her phone away.

"Right," Emily nodded, "Hey."

"You're not like contagious, are you?"

Emily shook her head, "No."

"Oh, right," Hanna smiled, "That would mean you were actually sick."

Emily panicked internally, "It was just a bad headache," she lied.

Hanna sat on the bed, "Better now?"

"A bit," Emily replied, "Han, why are you here?"

"Because usually when one of us is curled up sick, we at least text each other but you've been totally freezing us out all day. None of us have heard from you, it was kind of weird, Em."

"I was… sleeping," Emily improvised.

"You weren't sleeping just now when I saw you, looking pretty healthy, reject my call," Hanna counteracted, "I'm smarter than I look you know."

Emily rolled her eyes, "I know."

"So, why are you avoiding us?" Hanna prompted.

Emily shook her head, "I don't know, just one of those days, I guess."

Hanna nodded, "Oh, right."

The silence overtook the room. Hanna held back, remaining silent.

"So, maybe something did happen," Emily said at last.

Hanna let the silence wash over them again; it was a technique she'd heard Spencer talk about. People like to fill silence.

Emily sighed, "I like Aria. Like like. You know."

Hanna nodded, "I know," she smiled.

"Well, she told me…yesterday… that she," her brow furrowed, "likes…me."

"I know," Hanna repeated as she sighed with relief.

"What?" Emily asked dumbly, "You know?"

"Aria told me," Hanna explained, "But I told her I wouldn't tell you so I used this technique Spencer was talking about where you don't say anything and let the silence take over. People don't like silence so they start talking just to fill it," she shrugged, "I guess it worked."

"Hanna…" Emily shook her head, "Okay. So…she told you?"

"Yeah. She told me she liked you…and I might have told her she should tell you… so she did and now you're hiding out in your room. I don't get it, if you like her, isn't this a good thing?"

Emily pulled her knees up to her chest, "I don't know."

Hanna hesitated, "Em, is this about Ali?"

Emily practically felt her blood turn cold; the girls knew very little about Alison and Emily's relationship but they all knew Alison and what she could be like.

"I don't know what you mean."

Hanna tutted, "Bull. You liked her. And she knew it, right? She probably hung it over you like the bitch she was."

Emily bit her tongue before she nodded, "I guess."

"Em, I'm no good at this, can you just tell me what you're thinking?" Hanna pressed.

Silence.

"I kissed Ali more than once," Emily said quietly.

Hanna looked surprised, "You did? Were you and her…?"

"No," Emily shook her head, "She just…wanted to keep me on side, I guess. In hindsight, I think maybe she was questioning… I don't know. Sometimes I thought… or maybe it was wishful thinking," she'd seem to have lost the ability to string a coherent sentence together.

"Or maybe it was Alison being Alison?" Hanna suggested.

Emily nodded, "Yeah, maybe."

Hanna watched her friend curiously, "Em… were you in love with her?" she asked gently.

Emily closed her eyes, lowering her head.

Hanna reached for her friends' hand, "Hey, it's not anything to be ashamed of. She was our friend. We all fell for the…Ali-ness."

Emily looked up, "Yeah," she said quietly, "It's just…she kissed me back. More than once. But then she'd flirt with all those guys. I was just some kind of toy."

"I wish I'd known," Hanna squeezed her hand, "She shouldn't have played with you like that."

"Like you said, she played with us all," Emily shrugged.

"Yeah," Hanna nodded slowly, "But that's different, it's – "

"Pathetic," Emily interjected.

"No," Hanna said quickly, "Not at all. You were in love. I mean, Ali had power over all of us. But Em," Hanna paused, "Aria is nothing like Ali. You know that."

"I know," Emily confirmed.

"So… what is it you're scared of?" Hanna asked softly.

Emily met her gaze, "I just don't know if I can… put myself out there like that again."

"Because you're scared of being hurt."

Emily thought for a moment, "It was easy when it was just one way. I knew nothing was ever going to happen."

"And now it's…real?" Hanna guessed.

Emily nodded, "I never expected…"

"Em – "

"Sorry, I didn't mean to… interrupt."

Both girls looked up to see Aria standing hesitantly in the doorway.

"It's okay," Emily forced a smile, "You can come in."

Aria smiled and came in.

Hanna looked from one awkward friend to the other.

"I should head home, I'm meant to be eating with mum tonight," she claimed, "But I'll see you guys tomorrow."

She hugged Emily a little tighter than usual and smiled at both of them before leaving.

Aria took Hanna's spot on the bed.

"You don't look sick," she smiled.

Emily shook her head, "I'm not," she confirmed.

"Did you think about what I said yesterday?" Aria asked tentatively.

"Of course I did," Emily sighed, "I haven't really thought of anything else. I'm sorry I freaked out on you. That wasn't fair."

"It's fine, Em," Aria shrugged, "I caught you off guard, right?"

Emily nodded, "You did. I just don't know…where we go from here."

Aria bit her lip, hesitating before she raised a tentative hand to Emily's cheek, "I have an idea," she murmured quietly. She took her time as she moved her face closer to her friends. Her lips hovered over Emily's a moment, giving her time to pull away but when she didn't pressed her lips to Emily's.

Emily shivered at the contact of their lips before leaning eagerly into the kiss. Aria's lips were warm, gentle and her fingers lightly caressing her cheek had her heart hammering in her chest. It was soft and cautious until they grew more confident and it was Emily's tongue swiping along Aria's bottom lip that was granted access. Still, it was over too soon.

"That was a good idea," Emily bit her lip, smiling sheepishly.

Aria blushed as she grinned, "One of my better ideas for sure," she agreed.

Emily giggled, "Better than the forks as earrings, definitely."

Aria pretended to look offended, "You don't like my fork earrings? They're my favourite."

"I like them," Emily smiled, "They're very…you."

Aria squinted at her, "I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not."

"It is!" Emily rushed, "I like your style. Nobody is like you. And yes, that's definitely a good thing."

"Thank you," Aria beamed before taking Emily's hand in her own, "So, how are you feeling now?"

Emily chewed her tongue a moment, "Well, I feel like…" she entwined her fingers with Aria's, taking a deep breath, "we should go on a date. Like a movie…and dinner… but just us. No Hanna or Spencer or parents."

Aria nodded, "We're going to take over the world with all these good ideas."

Emily giggled and squeezed Aria's hand before kissing her lips.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Nice to know others appreciate this ship too! Let me know if there;s anything you want to see happen or anything, happy to hear from you always :D**

**Chapter 7**

Aria smiled wryly at Emily as their hands touched on the table. Aria cleared her throat and tried to switch back to the conversation their friends were having.

Hanna caught Emily's eye before she rolled her eyes. She'd been waiting for the new couple to reveal themselves to Spencer since they'd all sat down for lunch at the grille.

"So, um, we have news," Aria finally announced in a lull of conversation, casting a glance to Emily.

Hanna grinned but tried to look curious.

"Oh yeah?" Spencer asked, "What's up?"

"Yeah, what's up?" Hanna echoed, a little too excitedly.

"Well…" Aria looked to Emily again, who nodded, "Emily and I are seeing each other."

Spencer looked taken aback, "Really? I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise, you're always together but… that's cool."

Emily sighed with relief, "Cool."

"It's just hard because…" Spencer mused, "I don't know who to give the if you break her heart speech I'll kill you speech to," she grinned.

"Well, then how about we just agree not to?" Aria smiled, taking Emily's hand in her own.

Emily squeezed it gently.

* * *

Emily's eyes flicked to Aria's hand moving mechanically in and out of the popcorn box on her lap. It only stopped when she paused to take a sip of her drink. The way her lips sucked at the straw between them… Emily licked her own before biting her tongue.

Aria felt a stare on her and flitted her eyes up to see Emily lick her lips. She let the straw fall from her lips and smiled.

"You're staring," she whispered.

Emily blushed, "Sorry, I was…"

Aria tilted her head, "What?"

"I was waiting for you to stop eating all the popcorn so I could hold your hand," Emily admitted.

Aria laughed, "Oh," she grinned, "That's cute."

She proceeded to throw one last handful of popcorn in her mouth, wipe her hand off on her jeans and offer it to her girlfriend. Emily chuckled and took the hand offered to her, entwining their fingers.

* * *

"Who wants pizza? I want pizza," Hanna flicked through a menu absently.

Spencer shrugged, "Sure, no anchovies."

"Gross," Hanna pulled a face, "Guys?" she rolled her eyes at the couple lost in their own conversations, "So, Aria, you eat meat now, right?"

Aria snapped to it, "What? No. Pizza? Vegetarian, Hanna," she mock glared at her friend.

Emily laughed gently as she rest her head on Aria's shoulder from behind, "Will you still kiss me if I eat meat?"

Aria sighed, "Of course I will."

"Do your parents know yet?" Spencer asked, pulling the couple from their own little world.

Aria shook her head, "No, not yet."

Emily pulled a face, "Yeah, this could be our last sleepover like this. I don't even know if my parents will let me come to any if they know I'm dating you," she pecked Aria's neck as she pulled away.

"Oh, come on, what do they think is going to happen?" Hanna asked, before thinking for a sec, "Uh, don't answer that."

Spencer rolled her eyes, "Seriously, isn't it better for you to hang out like group situation than by yourselves anyway? I mean, in your parents eyes."

Emily shrugged, "Maybe. I guess I'll see, I'm telling them tomorrow."

Aria looked at her in surprise, "You are?"

"Yeah," Emily nodded, "I'm not going to hide who I am anymore. And this, us, is a part of that."

Aria smiled, placing a hand on Emily's cheek, "You're amazing."

* * *

"Thanks for walking me," Aria smiled, still holding Emily's hand, "Are you sure you want to talk to your parents alone?"

Emily nodded, "Yeah, it's the best way for now."

She was trying to put on a brave face, but Aria could see the nerves written all over her girlfriend.

"Okay," she agreed, "But call me, or just come over if you need to. Promise?"

"Promise," Emily smiled.

Aria swept a loose strand out of the brunette's eyes before leaning up on tiptoes to kiss her.

Emily smiled into the kiss as she placed a hand on Aria's waist.

"Shorty," she mumbled as the two broke apart momentarily.

"You love it," Aria whispered.

Emily replied with another kiss, more passionate this time…until she heard the door click open and sprung back.

"Well, hi there."

"Uh, I – I gotta go," Emily practically jumped down the steps and ran to the footpath.

Aria turned to face her mum in the doorway.

"I guess we should talk?"

* * *

"I heard about Emily but I didn't know you…"

"Neither did I," Aria explained, "I mean, I've never liked a girl before. Just Emily."

"So you're…curious?" Ella tried to understand.

Aria frowned, "I'm not curious, I like her. A lot. Labels are stupid. You raised me to be an individual and that's what I am."

Ella couldn't disagree with that; she smiled, "Well, whatever makes you happy."

Aria's face broke out into a smile, "Really?"

Ella shrugged, "Well, I'd rather you with Emily than some high school guy, really. Emily's a sweet girl."

Aria bit her lip, "Yeah, she is."

"In saying that… maybe we need to change some rules with all these sleepovers," Ella suggested.

Aria sighed, "What happened to Emily's a sweet girl?"

"She is but no matter how sweet the boy or girl is the rules don't change. You can sleepover when it's all the girls but… I'm just not sure, okay? Let me think on it."

Aria nodded, "Okay," she shrugged.

"Do her parents know?" Ella asked.

Aria looked worried, "No, she was going to… today. Mum, you know what they're like, if they kick her out or something, I mean can't she just sleep on the couch or the trundle bed?"

Ella could see the concern on her daughters face, "Of course, honey. If she really needs a place to stay, our door is always open to her. Just like it's always been to all of your friends."

* * *

Emily's parents knew she was gay. As much as they tried to deny it. Now she was throwing it in their face, telling them she had a girlfriend. It was always going to dredge up old feuds. It felt like the longest day ever but finally, her mum came home.

"Aria? I didn't know she was…gay too."

Emily avoided her mother's gaze, "It's not that black and white. People just like who they like," she sounded like her girlfriend and instantly scolded herself; her parents weren't going to understand this.

"So, all these sleepovers… " her mum pondered, "No, I don't want you sleeping over at that girls house anymore. Were you really at Hanna's last night?"

Emily sighed in frustration, "Yes, I was really at Hanna's. You can ask her mum if you don't trust me."

Pam frowned, "It's not that I don't trust you…"

"Then what?"

"If it was a boy I wouldn't let you sleep in the same bed either, you know that."

"I know," Emily agreed, "But, at least if when it's a group of us… we've been having them forever."

"I don't know," Pam answered, rubbing her temples, "Fine. Maybe."

Emily nodded. It could have been worse. She had expected worse. Which was probably why her heart was still hammering in her chest even after her mum left her room.

She pulled out her phone.

_Is your mum home? Can I come over? _

Less than thirty seconds later her phone went off.

_She's cool, Em. You're as welcome as you've always been. Are you okay?_

_I'm okay. I just need to see you._

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Emily knocked on her girlfriend's door.

Aria opened it and pulled her into a hug.

"You okay?" she asked gently, her cheek against soft hair.

"I am now," Emily whispered.

"Was it bad?" Aria asked as she pulled away but kept a hand on Emily's cheek.

Emily smiled, "It was better than I thought it would be actually."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Emily nodded, "I mean, it's still not my mum's favourite thing… but I think she's starting to accept it."

Aria smiled, "Well, hey, that's a good thing, Em. Really good."

Emily tried to smile but couldn't blink away the tears that threatened to come out.

"Hey, what is it?" Aria brushed a thumb over her tears.

Emily just sniffed and nuzzled into Aria's chest, letting a few more tears escape.

Aria ran a hand through her girlfriends hair.

"Em, why are you so upset?" she asked again after a few minutes.

Emily sniffed as she pulled her head out of Aria's chest, "I just… I don't want to lose you," she barely managed to get out.

Aria's brow furrowed, "What do you…" it hit her, "This is about Ali, isn't it?"

Emily wiped her eyes, merely shrugging.

"Em… I'm not going anywhere. What happened to Ali… was because she had all these secrets and a double life... Nobody's going to hurt me," Aria kissed her quickly.

"I'm sorry," Emily mumbled, "It's stupid."

"It's not stupid, Em," Aria said firmly, "We've all been there. I didn't want to let my family out of my sight after Ali. I was scared. We all were."

"But it's been over a year and I still am," Emily admitted, "Not just you… Hanna, Spence… my parents. If my mum is even five minutes late, my heart starts beating so fast…"

Aria hated seeing Emily like this, "Let's go inside, Em."

"Your mum…" Emily mumbled.

"She just went out," Aria tugged at her girlfriend's hand, leading her to her room, "Besides she's cool with us."

They sat on Aria's bed in a comfortable silence, Emily's head rested on Aria's shoulder as she stared at their entwined fingers.

"I don't know what's wrong with me."

Aria kissed her on top of the head, "Nothing is wrong with you. You've been through a lot, we all have."

"Yeah, I guess," Emily mumbled.

"Aria, are you…" Ella opened the door, "Oh hi, Emily."

Emily tried to let go of Aria's' hand but she had a tight grip, "Hi."

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" she offered.

"Um, sure. Thanks, Mrs Montgomery," Emily smiled.

"Okay just because you're dating Aria doesn't mean we have to go back to Mrs Montgomery," Ella chuckled.

Emily blushed and nodded silently.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Firstly, sorry for the lateness. I got super frustrated because I wrote this chapter and managed to lose it so I had to rewrite it. So frustrating! Secondly, sorry for...well, you'll see. Don't worry, things will be happy again. Thank you for the ongoing reads and reviews, etc.! :) How do you think Aria should help? Let me know your thoughts and ideas :) Enjoy!**

**Chapter 8.**

Emily's eyes fluttered open. She smiled lazily at the petite woman sleeping next to her. Aria looked so sweet. So peaceful. Emily moved closer to her girlfriend, wrapping her arms around her stomach from behind and pulling her closer.

Aria groaned a little in her sleep.

Emily stifled a giggle as Aria's eyes squeezed shut as though she was trying to fight off the waking world.

"Morning," Aria mumbled, turning over to face the other woman, "This sure is a nice way to wake up," she smiled.

Emily smiled, "It is. Your mum is so cool, letting me stay."

"Yeah, well, she did say it's a one off remember," Aria reminded her.

"Well, I'll just have to cry more often," Emily joked.

Aria didn't smile, "No, I don't want that. I hate seeing you like that, Em," she placed a hand on her girlfriends ribs, "I'm worried about you."

Emily bit down on her lip, "I'm okay, really."

Aria still looked concerned, "You know you can talk to me, Em, about anything," she paused, "Even Ali. I don't want you to feel like you can't talk to me about her because…" she stopped.

Emily nodded, "I know. Right now, I just want to lay with you here a little longer," she kissed Aria's lips quickly.

"Pity we have class to get to," Aria sighed.

"Nope, not yet," Emily leant in and kissed her again, "If this is a once off, we better take advantage of it."

She crawled on top of Aria and smiled down at her cheekily.

"We better," Aria agreed, pushing a hand through Emily's hair.

"You're so…" Emily stopped herself, a red tint creeping up her neck.

Aria smirked, "So…?" she waited, "Come on. Tell me!" she prompted.

Emily bit the corner of her lip, "Well, you're so cute. Especially your bedhead."

"Cute," Aria rolled her eyes, "Great. What am I – twelve?"

"I hope not," Emily pulled a face before laughing, "Okay. How about… you're really beautiful. Your eyes are gorgeous. And your laugh is adorable, sorry but yes, adorable. It's amazing how someone so cute can also be so… sexy."

Aria grinned, "You're sweet," she commented as she ran her hand through brunette hair, "And by the way, I think it's really unfair that you still look like this when you just woke up. And your hair is still so soft – how do you do that?"

Emily giggled, "You always touch my hair," she noted, "I like it."

Aria giggled too, "I like your hair, it's so pretty and it feels nice."

Emily blushed, patting her hair unconsciously, "Thanks."

Aria laughed.

"Are you girls up yet?" Ella's voice floated through the door.

Aria jumped out of bed, "Yeah, mum, we're getting ready now."

Emily rolled out of bed, stretching, "And now back to reality," she groaned.

* * *

The couple turned around as they heard a squeal from behind them.

Hanna came running up from behind them, "Aw, you guys holding hands, soooo cute!"

Emily blushed as Aria laughed.

"Did you guys tell your parents?" Hanna asked, "Is everything good?"

Emily nodded, "Yeah, mum was…okay. Not as cool as Aria's mum, she even let me stay the night."

Hanna's eyes lit up, "She did? In the same bed?"

Aria rolled her eyes, "We've slept in the same bed a thousand times, Han," she claimed, though a slight blush crept up her neck.

"Yeah, but as friends, not as a couple!" Hanna pressed, "Maybe I should become gay so I can just have friends over without mum knowing."

"Oh my god," Emily shook her head, "It was like a once-off cause I was…upset."

Hanna frowned, "About your mum? I thought she was okay?"

Emily shrugged.

Hanna looked to Aria questioningly.

Aria shook her head, "Anyway, what about Caleb? You know, the boy you like?"

"Oh yeah," Hanna remembered, "True," she sighed, "I guess I'll have to deal with the straight thing."

Aria laughed, "You poor thing."

* * *

Aria hesitated as she watched her girlfriend scribble away at her homework.

"You hungry?" she asked, placing her own pen down.

Emily looked up and nodded, "A bit."

"Let's go eat, homework can wait," Aria suggested.

Emily followed her down to the kitchen and helped the other girl make some sandwiches.

"Hey, Em?"

"Mm?" Emily chewed her sandwich absently.

"I was thinking… you know, maybe you should like talk to someone… you know, about Alison and everything…"

"I talk to you," Emily said quietly.

Aria smiled, "I know. You do. But, I don't know, I think maybe a professional… " she sighed, "You look tired. I know you're not sleeping and the other day…"

"I'm sorry," Emily mumbled.

"No," Aria rushed, "Don't be sorry, Em. It's just I hadn't realised how… caught up in everything you still were. I mean, my parents made me to talk to someone when it first happened, it was only a couple of times but it kind of helped."

Emily shook her head, "You're worrying too much. I'm fine. Really."

Aria sighed, "It's not a bad thing to go see someone. It doesn't mean you're weak or – "

"Then why am I the only one who still cares?" Emily snapped suddenly.

Aria's eyes widened in shock before she could respond, "You're not," she said evenly, "We all care. We all miss her. But it's been over a year and we can't stop living, Emily. At some point, we have to keep going."

"This isn't right," Emily said quietly.

"What isn't?" Aria frowned.

"This. Us," Emily stood up, "Ali would hate this. You and me," she shook her head.

Aria stood up and tried to take Emily's hand in her own, "Em, stop. You're torturing yourself. This is why I think you need to talk with someone. An adult. You've never dealt with this properly."

Emily pulled her hand away, "I've dealt with it fine. I just haven't chosen to forget like the rest of you," she picked up her bag and stormed out.

Aria had never seen her girlfriend like this. She didn't know if she should run after her or let her go. She decided on the latter for the moment. She hated fighting with Emily; seeing the tears pool in her eyes and then the anger flare up in them. She wondered what had really gone on the year she'd been in Iceland, if Emily had ever really spoken to anyone about Alison. She was guessing not; that's why it was all spilling out now.

She needed to find a way to help. She just didn't know how.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: So I really do want to show how people grieve differently, especially Emily. The show goes into a bit, but I like to get into it a bit more! Anyway, enjoy another installment and thank you so much for reading :)**

**Chapter 9**

"She said that?"

"Yeah," Aria sighed, "I mean, I don't think she meant it. She was just upset."

Spencer nodded, "Right, sure. But you're right, she totally needs to speak to someone. It doesn't sound like she's dealt with it at all."

"I guess… Did she ever see anyone, you know, after?"

Spencer shrugged, "I really don't know. We kind of stopped talking pretty soon after you left. We all just dealt with it in our own ways."

"Or not at all," Aria suggested.

"Or not at all," Spencer agreed.

"I don't know what I'm meant to do," Aria ran a hand through her hair, "Should I push her? Or leave her to herself for a while?"

Spencer thought for a minute, "I don't know," she sighed, "Just… you know, talk to her when she's calmer. Be honest. Tell her you care, tell her you're worried. Just don't be accusatory or she might flare up again."

Aria nodded, "Yeah… I just don't want to fight with her."

Spencer noted the sad tone in her friends voice, "Enough about Emily for a sec. How are you doing?"

Aria smiled a little, "I'm okay."

"Really?" Spencer sounded sceptical.

"I just keep replaying it in my head. She was so upset and so mad. I mean, have you ever seen Emily mad? She's like the most level headed of us all. It just sucked seeing…and hearing her like that," Aria finished sadly.

"But maybe she's not as level headed as we think," Spencer suggested.

Aria nodded, "Hm, I think there's a lot more going on in that head of hers than we realise," she put her head in her hands, "I just don't want to have stuffed things up so quickly. Ugh," she rested her head against the table, "Quickest relationship ever."

Spencer frowned, "Whoa, you're jumping the gun, Aria," she put her hand on Aria's shoulder, "You don't know that. You don't even know what she's thinking."

Emily lay on her bed until it grew dark around her. She wished she could sleep but her mind just kept replaying that scene. She'd been so mean. How could she have said those things to her girlfriend, her best friend? She didn't even know what had made her say it.

She picked up her phone. She stared at it a while until the light hurt her eyes and she placed it down with a groan.

"Emily?"

She sat up, "Yeah?" she asked monotonously.

Her mum frowned, "Why are you sitting in the dark?"

Emily shrugged, "I was just… hanging out," she finished lamely.

Her mum quirked an eyebrow, "In the dark… Come and have some dinner."

"Not hungry."

Her mum sat on the bed, "Emily, what's going on?"

Emily frowned, "Nothing. I'm fine. I was just tired of doing homework so I was lying down for a minute," she lied.

Her mum wasn't fooled, "Did you have a fight with your friends?" she paused, "With… Aria?"

Emily groaned, "I don't want to talk about it."

"So you did…" her mum mused, "What happened?"

Emily sat in a stony silence.

Her mum waited.

Emily huffed, "She's worried about me because I got upset about Ali the other night. Like, really upset I guess. She thinks I need to see like a professional or something because I haven't dealt with Ali's…death," the words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them, "But I said I didn't and I was fine and something like that just because they'd forgotten about Alison didn't mean I had."

Her mum let the words sink in before answering, "Emily… you know I only want what's best for you… I wanted you to see someone when Alison first passed but you said you were okay. Maybe I should have pushed you into it harder."

Emily bit her lip, fighting the tears forming in her eyes, "But I'm fine," she persisted weakly.

"Honey," her mum put a hand on her back, "I don't think you've been fine since Ali… she was your best friend, you miss her."

"I loved her," Emily said quietly.

"I know," her mum nodded, "Out of all the girls, you were closest to her."

"No," Emily shook her head, "I mean I was in love with her," she said quietly.

"Oh," her mum said, "I see," her mum tried to take in the unexpected confession, "Well, then, even more reason for you to talk to somebody about… all of this. Everybody grieves differently but we need to give ourselves the chance to."

Emily sighed, "Maybe," she paused, "It's just nobody even talks about her anymore. It's like they just… erased her. And I can't do that."

"Maybe you should tell your friends that, honey," her mum squeezed her hand, "Please come and eat something."

Emily nodded, "I'll be down in a sec. I'm just going to make a quick phone call."

Her mum smiled and left her to it.

Aria spotted Emily in the park, sitting on the bench. She stopped in her tracks for a moment, gathering herself before approaching her girlfriend.

"Hey."

Emily looked up at her wide eyed, "Hey."

Aria sat down, "I'm glad you called."

Emily nodded, "Yeah, me too," she nibbled on her lip, "I'm really sorry for how I spoke to you the other day, it wasn't right," she said sincerely, "I didn't really mean it – "

"Are you sure?" Aria asked, continuing as Emily frowned, "Because if you really do feel that way, like you're the only one who still remembers Ali, you're wrong, Em," she spoke gently but firmly.

Emily nodded, "I know. It's just…" she hesitated, "nobody ever even talks about her anymore. I mean…as soon as you left, we all split up," she shrugged, "I didn't have anyone to talk about her with and then… time just went by… and you came back and we all reconnected but still… we never spoke about her. Nobody ever does. Spencer doesn't even have any pictures in her room anymore. How can they just – "

"Em," Aria took her hand, "I promise you none of us have forgotten Alison. It's just that people deal in different ways…"

"You said we have to move on," Emily said quietly.

Aria sighed, "You can move on without forgetting someone, Em. I just meant time doesn't stop and we have to keep on living."

Emily nodded, "Okay. I…I know that."

"You can talk to me about Ali any time you want," Aria squeezed her hand, "And we can talk to the others too."

Emily nodded again, "Okay," she smiled a little, "I think you're right though. Maybe I do need to speak to someone."

Aria smiled, "That's good, Em. You know I'll support you however I can."

"So, are we okay?" Emily asked tentatively.

"Yes," Aria replied, "Of course. I really hate fighting with you."

Emily sighed with relief, "I hate fighting with you too."

"Come here," Aria pulled her close, enveloping the taller woman in an embrace, "Just promise me something?"

Emily nodded.

"We have to keep being honest with each other," Aria said quietly.

"Okay," Emily agreed, "Promise," she hesitated, "Um."

Aria tilted her head, "What is it?"

Emily smiled sheepishly, "Can I kiss you now?"

Aria laughed, "Ah, I see," she grinned, "Sure."

Emily bit her lip before leaning in towards her girlfriend and kissing her lips softly at first, but more eagerly once she had tasted the enticing lip gloss Aria had on. She licked her lips as they parted.

"Sorry, too sticky?" Aria asked.

Emily giggled, "No, I like it."

Aria chuckled, "I'll take note of that then," she teased, "Do you want to come to mine for a bit?"

"Sure," Emily shrugged, "Do you think we're allowed to watch a movie in your room?"

Aria stood up and offered her hand to Emily, "It depends if my mum can read your mind or not," she laughed.

Emily blushed, "Oh, shush, I just want to lay with you."

"Well then, depends if my mum can read my mind or not," Aria smirked and entwined her fingers with Emily's, leading the surprised brunette through the park.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: So hopefully I don't get crucified with taking it in this direction... Let me know your thoughts :)**

**Chapter 10**

_Emily woke up as something weighed down on her mattress. She sat up, squinting through the dark._

_"Don't you love me anymore?"_

_She couldn't see but she'd recognise that voice anywhere. She quickly switched her lamp._

_"A-Ali?" her throat was dry._

_"Looks like you found a new friend to kiss," Alison half-smirked._

_It wasn't the same though, Emily thought, there was something…different about her._

_"Where have you been?" Emily croaked out._

_Alison shrugged, "Around," she smiled suddenly; there it was, that mischievous look in her eye that told Emily she was about to be in trouble, "Did you miss me?"_

_Emily's head was swimming, "Of course I missed you. But where…why…" she frowned, "Are you back?"_

_Alison smiled her fondly as she tucked a piece of hair behind Emily's ear, "I just wanted to see you. You were always my favourite."_

_"Ali, I don't – "_

_"You still wear it," Alison ran her hands over the bracelet on Emily's wrist, "You always loved me the most," she said softly._

_"Ali, I don't – "_

_Alison placed a finger on soft lips, "Go to sleep, Em."_

_"But – "_

_Alison's hand found Emily's cheek, "Please. Close your eyes."_

_Emily had never heard Alison beg like that. She closed her eyes._

Emily woke up feeling like she hadn't slept at all. It wasn't unusual for her to dream about Alison but this time felt different. It felt real. She shook the thought out of her head, she was being silly. Not enough sleep, she thought, she was getting delusional. She looked at the clock and groaned, she needed to get up for school.

It was a slow morning as Emily ambled around her room, trying not to think about Alison. Every time she thought about that dream, she felt guilty. Alison had just looked so… Alison. Emily had still felt that pull in her stomach when she had heard Alison's voice. How was this fair to Aria? But she really, really liked Aria. She was sweet and beautiful and always, always there for Emily. She was so reliable and they always had fun together. So why couldn't she stop thinking about that stupid dream?

Finally, she managed get herself presentable and made to leave her room, turning back at the last minute to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. Her eyes settled on the window. The open window. She frowned, walking over to it. She never left her window open at this time of year. She pulled it down. Maybe her mum had opened it, she thought, that must be it.

* * *

"Em?" Aria nudged her girlfriend, "Emily?"

Emily looked up. All her friends were staring at her expectantly.

"Um, what?"

"Jeez, you're spaced today," Hanna noted, "You alright?"

Emily smiled, "Sure, I just didn't sleep well."

"You coming over tonight?" Spencer asked.

"Oh yeah, sure," Emily nodded, "Sounds great."

Aria squinted at her, trying to figure out what was going on with her girlfriend.

The bell rung.

Aria didn't want to push Emily so she squeezed her hand, "I'll see you after school?"

"Uh, I was gonna go for a swim after school. I'll see you at Spencer's?"

Aria nodded, "Alright," she smiled, "Enjoy your swim," she kissed her lips quickly.

Emily smiled until Aria was out of sight. Then her shoulders dropped as she sighed.

Emily pulled herself out of the pool, feeling a little more relaxed. Swimming always had that effect on her. She grabbed her towel and picked up her phone. Twelve missed calls, all from the girls. She frowned. She wasn't that late.

She dialled Aria's number and listened to it ring.

"Em, hey. Are you far away?"

"I just got out of the pool, I'll be there in like half hour. What's going on?" Emily asked.

"Oh, well, sure, okay."

Emily was confused by her tone, "Is everything okay, Aria?"

"Yeah, just get here as soon as you can, Em."

"Okay, see you soon."

Emily hung up and got changed as soon as she could. She tried to think of what could be going on but her mind drew a blank. It can't have been something just between her and Aria or the rest of the girls wouldn't have been calling her. She felt anxious and she didn't even know why.

She pedaled quickly and got to Spencer's as quick as she could. She was going to stop by home but she decided against it. She found the girls in the barn.

"Hey, guys," Emily approached them.

"Hey, Em," Hanna smiled a little, the other two not hiding their tenseness.

"What's…going on?" Emily asked, sitting down on the couch with the others.

The other three exchanged looks.

"Miss DiLaurentis visited my mum today," Spencer started.

Emily frowned, "Miss DiLaurentis was in town?"

"She's moving back," Spencer shared.

"Oh," Emily nodded.

"There's more," Aria said softly.

Emily waited.

Aria ran a hand through her hair. Hanna rolled her eyes and turned to Em.

"Apparently there was like a sighting," Hanna delivered it straight, "Someone thinks they saw Alison."

Emily felt her heart pound and her mouth go dry, "In… Rosewood?"

"Courtland, a few towns over," Hanna said.

Emily nodded wordlessly.

"But I mean, who knows, right?" Hanna continued, "Nobody's seen for her for over a year and then she just turns up? It's probably not even her."

"Still… it's nice to think that she could be alive. I mean, hadn't we all assumed…" Spencer trailed off as the others nodded understandingly.

"I just don't know why she'd come so close to home," Aria frowned.

"I can't believe Mrs DiLaurentis is going to be next door again," Spencer pondered, "That's going to be weird."

"Does she really think Ali will come back?" Hanna thought aloud.

"Do we really think Ali is alive?" Aria asked.

"I think she had every reason to want to run away," Spencer suggested, "Just would have been to know."

"Em?" Aria squeezed her girlfriends knee, "Are you okay?"

Emily nodded, "Sure. It's just… I thought… " she shook her head, trying to string some words together, "I'm glad she's alive," she finished.

Aria bit her lip, "Em, she might be. We don't know."

"She is," Emily blurted before stopping herself, "I mean, don't you feel it? Like she was never really gone?"

"I just thought she'd run off… I mean, it would be very Ali to just leave and want to be the centre of attention," Spencer shrugged, "She'd love to know that everyone was talking about her and – "

"Except you weren't," Emily interrupted, "None of you were. You just forgot about her. Do you really think she'd run away just to make a story? We were her friends. What about her family? She wouldn't just cut contact for fun."

The other three stared at her.

"That's not what we're saying, Em," Aria said softly, "The truth is we just have no idea what happened. I just don't want us to get our hopes up if the sighting was false."

Emily shrugged.

"I guess we just sit back and wait. It's not like we can do much…"

Emily tossed and turned all night and consequently yawned all day. It didn't do much for her swimming when she could barely keep her eyes open. She was unfastening her bike when she had the eerie feeling someone was watching her. Looking around, she couldn't see anyone and she shook it off.

She was glad her mum wasn't home. She wanted nothing but to lay down and maybe have a nap before her date with Aria. She trudged up the stairs and opened her bedroom door, stopping in her tracks.

"Hey, Em," Alison smiled that familiar, sweet smile as she sat on the edge of Emily's bed.

Emily opened her mouth wordlessly.

Alison outstretched her hand. Emily took it and allowed her friend to pull her onto the bed beside her.

"I can't believe you're really here," Emily finally found her voice.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Yah I'm giving myself the feels with all this haha. Thanks for reading guys and I really appreciate all the reviews! What next!? Do you think Em should tell Aria!? Or maybe one of the other girls?**

**Chapter 11.**

"What…why… how?" Emily stuttered.

"That's not a complete sentence," Alison smiled as she took Emily's hand.

"The other night…" Emily's brow furrowed, "I thought… I dreamt…"

Alison sighed, "It wasn't a dream, Em. I just wanted to see you."

Emily stood up and began to pace, "I didn't think that was real. How was that real?"

"You always used to forget stuff when you woke in the middle of the night," Alison shrugged, "You're kinda a dope when you first wake up sweetie," she smiled.

"Oh," Emily blinked, still in shock, "Ali, where the hell have you been?"

"Philly mostly," Alison offered, "I just had to get away, Em. You think you know what my family was like," she continued quietly, "But that only scratched the surface."

Emily bit her lip, "Ali… someone saw you. In Courtland. Are you back? You know your mum's moving back – "

"I'm not back," Alison interrupted, "I just wanted to see you, Em."

Emily frowned, "You're just going to disappear again?" her eyes were wide.

Alison took Emily's hand again, "I can't go back to my mum. She's not a good person, Em."

Emily hung her head for a moment before looking Alison in the eye, "I don't want you to leave, Ali," she said, feeling braver with her feelings than she ever had before, "You just got here. It's been so hard without you. I miss you so much. I need you," she rambled.

Alison's expression softened, "I missed you too. Why do you think I came back to see you?" she paused, "But hey, you have Aria now," she smiled tightly.

Emily bit her lip, "Aria's great… " her shoulders slumped.

"Em… don't…" Alison shook her head.

Emily took a deep breath, gathering the last of her courage, "Alison, did you ever… " she swallowed tightly, "You said I was your favourite. Did that mean… did you ever…"

A message tone interrupted the stuttering teenager. Emily huffed, picking up her phone and quickly reading the text from her girlfriend before putting it down.

"Was it Aria?" Alison asked.

Emily met her eyes and nodded, "Yeah, we have a…date later."

"Never would have guessed it, last I remember Aria was pretty boy crazy," Alison laughed softly.

Emily shrugged, "Yeah…well."

"Hope she's not using you, Em," Alison quipped.

Emily crossed her arms, "You don't really get to have an opinion on me and Aria. You haven't been here."

Alison leant closer to her friend, looking her dead in the eye, "What, so my opinion really means nothing to you anymore?"

Emily turned away, shaking her head sadly, more at herself than Ali's question.

"I guess I should go," Alison suggested.

Emily turned back to her, nodding stiffly.

"Your mum home?" Alison asked.

Emily frowned, "No. Why?"

"Door's easier than the window," Alison claimed, walking towards the bedroom door.

She opened it barely an inch before it was hit closed again. She smirked a moment before turning around to see her friend standing close to her, one hand still resting firmly against the door. Emily's eyes were focussed intensely on Alison, trying to read her, to get something out of her expression, this visit because she just couldn't understand. She couldn't accept that Alison would risk being seen just to –

Then soft lips met her own and everything melted away. God, she tasted even better than she ever had before. Emily was braver than she ever was before, moving her hand to Alison's waist and backing her against the door. She felt two hands slip around the back of her neck and –

Her message tone sounded again. She pulled away, breathing slightly and staring into Alison's eyes for a moment.

"Does that answer your question, Em?" Alison smiled, "Now, I should go. Let you get ready for your date," and she slipped out the door.

* * *

Aria checked her phone, she was right on time. She smiled as she saw the wallpaper on her phone; a photo of a giggling Emily being kissed by Aria. Emily's smile was so radiant, she thought, the way it travelled to her eyes. She bought the tickets while she waited.

"Hey, sorry I'm late."

Aria looked up and smiled at her girlfriend who was rushing up the street, looking slightly dishevelled as she ran a hand through her hair.

"It's fine, Em," she kissed her quickly, "Are you okay?"

Emily nodded, "Sure," she plastered on a grin, "Just mum was keeping me, that's all. I'll grab the tickets."

Aria held them up, "Done," she smiled.

"Oh! Well, I'll get us some popcorn then!" Emily stated.

"Wouldn't say no," Aria laughed.

Emily bought them some popcorn and they took their seats. Emily couldn't concentrate on the movie but at least she didn't have to make conversation. She just sat in the dark, staring at the screen without really seeing it and feeling guilty as all hell. When Aria had finished what she could of the popcorn she took Emily's hand and squeezed it. Emily forced herself to squeeze back.

This was awful, she thought, she didn't like keeping things from Aria. It had only been two hours and the guilt was already gnawing away at her. But how could she tell her? Who knew if Ali would even turn up again? Maybe that was it, Emily thought.

But that kiss… Why was Ali so infuriatingly confusing? Had she meant… Why couldn't she just say things the way they were? Why was everything a game or a mixed message? And why did Emily even care? She had Aria now. Aria, who was beautiful and sweet and honest.

"Em? What did you think?" Aria was asking her as the credits rolled.

Emily blinked; "Um, it was…pretty good," she smiled, "Did you like it?"

Aria nodded, "It was so good! Classic love story but sooo romantic," she leant into Emily as they walked out of the theatre.

Emily smiled, "I'm glad you liked it."

"Do you have to get home right away? I thought maybe we could get some ice cream?" Aria asked.

Emily bit her lip; of course she'd love to get ice cream with Aria. She'd love to put her arm around her and keep her warm while they got brain freeze. She'd love to be able to laugh with her girlfriend and feel like she usually did around this wonderful, amazing girl.

"Mum says I have to be home by nine thirty, school night and all," Emily lied, "So we don't really have time," she sighed.

Aria nodded, looking disappointed, "Aw, okay fair enough," she took Emily's hands and stood on her tiptoes pressing her lips to Emily's.

Emily pushed back, cupping her girlfriend's face. God, this felt good, she thought as her tongue swiped Aria's bottom lip and their tongue's met briefly before pulling apart.

"Text me when you get home," Emily said quietly, still holding her girlfriend's waist.

Aria smiled, "Always," she replied, loving the way Emily cared so much about her safety, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Emily smiled, giving her one last kiss before walking away.

* * *

"Han, have you thought much about Ali? I mean, maybe being alive and all…"

Hanna looked at her friend, putting her drink down slowly as she gathered her thoughts, "I don't know… Sometimes I wonder, but it's just so bizarre. How could a person just disappear for a year…" she shrugged, "Have you been thinking about it?"

Emily nodded, "Sometimes. I mean, what if…" she paused, "What if she really was alive? Would it change…everything?"

Hanna didn't miss the quiet desperation in her friend's voice, "I don't know, Em. Would it?" she asked quietly, "You're talking about Aria, right? So you tell me, would it change anything?"

Emily sighed, "I don't know," she mumbled.

"Well," Hanna spoke carefully, "I think Aria is really good for you, Em. And she really likes you."

Emily nodded, "I know. I really like her too."

"Do you…still have feelings for Ali?" Hanna dared to ask.

Emily tensed, "I don't know," she said honestly, "It's…confusing."

"So, say she did come back alive and all," Hanna started, "It's not like you two were ever… a thing, right? So, if you like Aria and she likes you, things should be fine, right?"

Emily frowned, "But I shouldn't be Aria if I still have feelings for Ali, should I?"

Hanna sighed, "If you still have feelings for Ali, just don't tell Ali that."

Emily blinked, "What do you mean? What about Aria?"

"Because if Ali knows you still like her, she'll totally use it against you. Em, we saw her play with every guy whoever fawned over her. She was a class A cold hearted bitch," Hanna told it straight, "Those guys probably bounced back as soon as the next piece of eye candy came along but you're different… You're sensitive."

Emily huffed, "Sensitive," she echoed, "Great."

Hanna shook her head, "I just mean…you feel things like deeper. You're not some horny teenage boy who just likes people cause they're hot, you're like…invested. I just wouldn't want to see you used, that's all."

"She wasn't that bad," Emily muttered.

Hanna quirked an eyebrow, "Really?"

Emily grimaced and shrugged.

"You want my advice Em?" Hanna waited for her friend to nod, "Forget Ali. She played you when she was around and now she's not. You have a cute girl whose totally in like with you and treats you well. Stick with the good one."

Emily nodded. If only it was that easy, she thought, just flick a switch and forget Ali. That was hard to do when the day before she'd had her pinned to her bedroom door and her tongue down her throat. It had barely been twenty four hours and she already missed Ali. Would she ever come back? Was that their goodbye? Trapping her in one last lie seemed like a very Ali thing to do.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Apologies in advance but I just let this run and this is where it went! Let me know what you think and what you want to happen! :) Just for the record, I have no idea at this stage who is endgame.**

**Chapter 12**

"So how serious is it with you guys?" Spencer asked as the two sat studying.

Aria bit her lip as it curled into a smile, "I don't know," she mumbled, "I really, really like her."

"You guys are pretty cute," Spencer grinned, "So like, have you guys had se-"

"Spence!" Aria exclaimed, hitting her friends arm, "No! I mean, it hasn't been that long… plus, it can be sorta hard to get time to ourselves with our parents all over the situation," she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah… well, at least your parents are cool with it," Spencer shrugged before her eyes lit up, "Hey! I have an idea. You guys could go up to my lake house. It's basically unused just sitting there… you could just tell your parents all of us are going," she sensed her friends hesitation, "I mean, you don't have to actually do anything, it might just be nice to have some alone time out of Rosewood."

Aria thought about it for a moment; it sure would be nice to have some completely to themselves, away from prying parent eyes, "Hmm," she wondered, "You think we could do it this weekend?"

Spencer nodded, "Sure, I'll bring the keys in tomorrow!"

* * *

"This weekend?" Emily asked hesitantly as her and Aria lay in Aria's bed.

Aria nodded, "Sure, I mean, we didn't have anything else planned, right?"

"The lake house…"" Emily pondered.

Aria's propped herself up on her elbows, looking at her girlfriend, "You think it's a bad idea."

"No, it's not that. It's just I think my dad might be coming home this weekend. I'm not sure, mum's waiting for the call," Emily smiled apologetically.

"Oh," Aria nodded, "Well, sure, we can always do it next weekend, I guess."

Emily nodded, "Sure. Sounds great," she smiled.

Aria watched her girlfriend closely, "Are you okay? You seem a little quiet the last few days," she said a little nervously.

"Sorry, I guess I haven't been sleeping so well," Emily offered. It was true, after all.

"Yeah," Aria nodded quietly, "Have you been thinking about Alison?"

"Alison?" Emily said quickly.

"I've thought about it too, Em," Aria stated, "I mean, we all have… It kind of came pretty out of the blue and all…"

"Uh-huh," Emily replied numbly.

"Em?"

"What?" Emily asked.

"Are you sure you're okay? I know it's different for you so if – "

"It's not," Emily cut in, "And I'm fine."

Aria frowned, not buying it, "Okay… but you know it's okay not to be fine."

"But I am," Emily said firmly.

Aria was losing her patience, "Fine, you're fine. Great," she crossed her arms.

Emily was confused, "Now you're mad?" she asked incredulously, "Why are you mad?"

Aria sat up fully, moving to the edge of her bed where Emily quickly followed, "You're not the only one who was friends with her, Emily," there was a cool edge to her voice Emily didn't like.

"I know that," Emily said.

"Then why didn't you ever ask if I was okay? Didn't you ever think about how this might affect me? Or didn't you care?" Aria was getting fired up now.

"Of course I care," Emily replied guiltily and wide eyed.

"Just because you're in love with her doesn't mean you're the only one who this affects," Aria snapped but bit her lip the moment she heard her own words.

Emily stood up, "You think I'm still in love with her?" her voice was rising now, "Why would you say that?"

"You act like she was your girlfriend and the rest of us were just your little minions or something," Aria was standing now, "Like you're the only one that cares."

Emily's face was burning and she didn't know if it was in anger or embarrassment or shame, maybe all three, "I know you care," she got out between gritted teeth, "I just don't know if you really want Ali to be alive."

Aria's eyebrows raised so high they disappeared under her hair, "I can't believe you just said that. Why the hell wouldn't I want her to be alive?"

"Because it might change things," Emily snapped before biting her tongue.

The two stared at each other for a few moments.

"Would it change things?" Aria asked, unable to hide the hurt in her voice.

Emily's uncrossed her arms, "I… I…," she struggled, "I have to go," she muttered before turning and walking out.

Aria shook her head, too mad and sad and confused to follow her girlfriend right now. They were both too fired up to have a rational conversation anyway. She sat back on the edge of her bed and put her head in her hands.

Maybe it had been too soon, she thought miserably, maybe she hadn't given Emily enough time. There were so many signs she'd ignored. She just really liked Emily. She lay back on her bed and wondered how a sweet cuddling session on her bed had turned into… Whatever this was. Were they even together? Why hadn't Emily been able to answer the question?

Aria groaned as she curled into a ball under the covers.

* * *

Emily was in tears by the time she got home. She had ran home, hoping to burn off her angry energy but it hadn't really helped. She was glad her mum had left for Texas today. She stomped up the stairs. Emily wiped her eyes as she walked into her bedroom. She huffed.

"You ruined everything," she glowered, crossing her arms.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: OK this is a long one and fair bit of emison but it needed to be done and it was both fun and painful to write. Feeeels. Enjoyyy! Let me know what you think.**

**Chapter 13.**

"Oh, don't be so dramatic," Alison rolled her eyes, unmoving. She lay comfortably on Emily's bed, head propped up against the headboard and an open book beside her.

Emily glared at her, "Why are you even here?"

Alison shrugged, "I got bored where I was, okay?"

"Bored?" Emily asked incredulously, "Well, god forbid you get bored while the rest of the world is thinking you're dead."

"Could you sit down? Your pacing is making me kind of dizzy, Em," Alison smiled.

"Your mum is back in town, why don't you just go home?" Emily was still worked up and couldn't keep the irritation out of her voice.

"You don't understand," Alison shook her head, "I can't."

Emily continued pacing, "I know you fight but she's still your mum, Ali."

Alison sighed, "I'm not going home. Would you just sit?"

"You ruined everything," Emily repeated, "Everything with Aria and me was great and then you come along – "

"Should I apologise for actually being alive?" Alison asked coolly.

Emily stopped and actually looked at Alison for the first time in minutes. Her arms uncrossed and her shoulders slumped.

"I'm glad you're alive," she whispered.

Alison quirked an eyebrow, "Really? Cause it seems like I'm just an inconvenience to your love life. Which is funny seeing as we never even went out," she licked her bottom lip, "Is it my fault that you're in love with me?"

Emily's cheeks burnt again as her fists clenched, "That's not even what I meant," she forced out through clenched teeth, "I mean, you turn up and all of a sudden I'm keeping your secrets again. Just like always."

"Did I ever tell you not to tell Aria?" Alison climbed off the bed and stood beside the brunette, "Or did you just make that choice yourself?"

Emily frowned and took a step backwards; she didn't trust herself this close to her friend anymore, "I just knew you wouldn't…"

Alison took a step forward, invading Emily's space, "And why did you care? If you just want me to go away… why would it matter if I was angry at you?" there was a teasing edge to her voice as she took Emily's hand in her own.

Emily struggled to swallow, "Because…" she faltered, "Because… I don't just want you to go away, I want you to be okay and safe. I just don't…" she ground her teeth together hard until Ali's thumb swept across it, she stepped backwards, "Don't," she said quietly, "I don't know how you could let me think you were just gone for over a year. I thought you must be dead and I grieved for you Ali. I cried every day for months. And now you're here like oh hey just been hanging out. Didn't you ever care about me, about any of us at all? You could just run off and leave us behind like it meant nothing," she didn't know when she'd started crying but she had.

Alison drew her close, she resisted at first but then gave in, "Leaving Rosewood was the hardest thing I've ever done, Em. I… I'm sorry."

Emily pulled herself from Alison's arms, "I just don't understand. Why? You could have told me, I thought you knew you could trust me."

Alison smiled, "I did know that," she paused, "But I also knew that if I told you what was happening, you'd probably offer to come with me. And I didn't trust myself to say no."

Emily bit her lip; it was true, she thought, if she'd had the option she would have gone anywhere with Alison, "Fine," she said softly, "But you came back. And you came back to my room. So now you have to tell. Everything," she spoke gently but firmly.

"I wouldn't mind hearing that myself."

Alison and Emily's heads quickly snapped to the door where Aria was standing, with a somewhat bewildered expression on her face.

"A-Aria," Emily stammered, "How long have you been…?"

Aria shrugged, "Long enough. I came to apologise about…before," she eyed Alison warily, "but I heard you two talking…" she approached Alison, "I can't believe you're here… and I don't know if I should hug you or punch you," she shook her head.

Alison smiled, "How about a hug? You're little but I'm pretty sure you punch big."

Aria rolled her eyes and gave her old friend a hug.

"Promise me you'll take care of her," Alison whispered.

Aria's mouth opened in surprise before she closed it and nodded in response.

Emily watched the interaction awkwardly.

"You might want to sit, it's kind of a long story," Alison offered, crawling back onto Emily's bed.

The others followed suit, no idea what to expect. Emily guessed it was something to do with Alison's mother but what could be so bad it drove Alison to leave the way she did?

"You have to promise this doesn't leave these walls," Alison started seriously.

"I think we know how to keep your secrets by now, Ali," Emily replied.

"Good," Alison nodded, "Speaking of, do you remember when I told you I had that cousin in Radley, Em?"

Emily nodded, more confused than ever, "Sure, you visited a couple of times, I remember."

"What cousin?" Aria frowned, looking between the two.

"Well… she wasn't exactly a cousin," Alison said slowly, "She was my sister."

Emily's eyes widened, "Your… sister?"

Alison nodded, "Uh-huh, I know, right? I thought she was just some cousin… but I found out she was really my sister… and when that place closed down, they said she was healthy enough to come home."

"Home? To your house, you mean?" Emily asked, her head swimming.

"Yeah," Alison confirmed, "Dad and I went and picked her up. She was quiet. She was always quiet and a bit odd, but I didn't think she was so bad really. She was a couple of years older than me but it felt the other way around. We bought her to the house and set her up. Mum was on a business trip at the time so it was just the three of us. Dad was kind of nervous, I think, he kept checking on her a lot."

Aria and Emily were transfixed, not knowing what to expect.

"Anyway, I kind of liked her," Alison smiled a little, "She was easy to boss around," she shrugged, "I showed her how to do all my chores."

"Of course you did," Aria muttered.

"I thought she was kind of lost and she looked at me like I was her big sister, even though it was the other way around. I liked that. I thought I could help her," Alison stopped a moment, pondering, "I thought she was sort of sweet like you, Em. You'd like her."

Emily smiled a little, "So, what happened?" she asked tentatively.

"It was only a week, but mum got home and… the moment she saw my mum she started screaming and crying and saying she didn't want to live with us anymore. All this stuff about what my mum had done and how she was a monster… I didn't know what to think. Was she crazy? But I saw the look in my mum and dad's eyes… like they were hiding a secret."

"Did you ask them? Did she calm down? Did – "

Alison held up a hand cutting her friend off, "We couldn't calm down, she ran off and I chased her. I managed to catch up and I asked her what she meant about my mum and what had she done? But it was too late, she thought I was on my mum's side… I tried so hard to convince her I was safe but next thing I knew she smacked me with a damn rock. I passed out."

"Oh my god," Emily felt her body grow even tenser if that were possible.

Alison shrugged, "When I woke up, she was gone, of course. I went back home. She wasn't there of course. I asked my parents and they just put it down to her illness. But it ate at me for the next couple of days and things were tense at home. Tenser than usual. I asked mum about it again, I guess I was pressing kind of hard because she slapped me across the face… " she sighed, "The next day I left. To find my sister. I had to try and track her down, she knew something about my parents and plus…" she paused, "I didn't think she would be safe out there on her own. I was worried."

"Did you find her?" Aria asked.

"I had a few leads… people she'd known in Radley but none of it went anywhere… Then, when that report came up that someone thought they saw me in Courtland," Alison frowned, "It was such a long shot, but it sounded like it could have been her and…" she looked at Emily, "I think I'd been searching for an excuse to come home."

"Ali…" Emily was stuck for words, she moved closer to her friend and held her close, "I'm sorry."

Aria watched the two embrace, she couldn't even feel jealous right now after what Alison had told them, "Yeah, I'm really sorry, Ali," she said, "I wish we'd known."

Alison sniffed as she pulled out of Emily's arms, "I'm sorry for what I put you guys through, I really am. I was just so scared of my mum finding me… I think she did something really bad… and if she thinks I know," Alison bit her lip, "I still need to find my sister."

Aria understood now; Alison was going to leave again.

Emily's eyes looked seconds from spilling over, "You're leaving again, aren't you?" she whispered.

Alison nodded, "Yes," she answered hoarsely, "But how about tomorrow? I'd like to see Spencer and Hanna too before I go, I don't know when… I don't know when I'll be back."

Emily nodded, "Okay," she whispered, "My mum's in Texas, so you can stay here…" she looked at Aria, who nodded in agreeance.

"Thanks, Em," Alison reached out and squeezed her hand before looking to Aria, "Do you think I could speak a minute alone with Emily?"

Aria bit her tongue, nodding, "Sure, I'll go get some drinks," she smiled tightly, trying to be cool with the situation.

Emily avoided her gaze until Ali forced her friend to look at her.

"Em, I care about you a lot, you know that, right?" Alison spoke quietly.

Emily nodded, "I know."

Alison hesitated, "Aria is great for you. She really cares for you and she's there for you. You need to let her be."

Emily's eyes welled up again, "Ali… I need to know… "

Alison closed her eyes for a moment, "I know you do. You're right. I owe you that," she breathed in deeply, "You were always my favourite. My best friend. I liked kissing you. I still like kissing you. I like the way you looked at me like I was the whole world. I liked that you were always the first to jump to my defence and the first to pull me into your arms when something bad happened," she paused, "I might have even loved you. But I see you and Aria… the way she looks at you, the way you go on cute little dates and kiss in public. That's what you deserve, Em. And I can't give that to you."

Emily nodded stiffly, once again lost for words.

Alison wiped a tear off her own face, "I'm sorry for how I treated you. I really am."

Emily swallowed painfully, "You'll always be my best friend, Ali."

Alison smiled and wrapped her arms around the other woman, "And you'll always be my favourite," she whispered as both their eyes spilled the tears they'd been trying to hold back.

* * *

"You ok?"

Emily turned away from the fridge she was gazing blankly into. She'd just needed an excuse to get some space while Ali was talking to the other girls.

She sighed with relief upon seeing it was Aria, "I don't know. Ok might be an overstatement," she smiled weakly.

Aria moved closer to her, "Can I do anything?"

Emily hesitated, "A hug maybe?"

Aria smiled and wrapped her arms around Emily, feeling her relax against her own body. She put a hand in brunette hair and felt the other woman nestle into her shoulder. Aria smiled; maybe things would be okay, after all.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Emily lay on her bed. Alison was gone. Again. Just like that. She didn't know how to feel, so she just didn't. All of a sudden her eyes felt so heavy, her body too. She didn't fight it, it felt good to be tired and unable to even string a coherent thought together before her mind fell into the best sleep she'd had in a very long time.

* * *

"Hey," Aria sat with Hanna and Spencer at the brew, "You guys ordered?"

"Yeah, I ordered you a latte," Hanna smiled.

Aria nodded, "Thanks, Han. Are you guys… alright?"

"You know, I think I am," Spencer said slowly, "I mean, it's just a relief that she's alive. I just hope she can find the answers she's looking for…"

"Mmm," Hanna agreed, "What about you? Have you heard from Em, she's coming right?"

Aria looked towards the door, "She said she was, yeah."

"Is she… okay? Her and Ali were always the closest," Hanna noted.

Aria sighed, "I'm not sure. I think she'll be okay in time. I think… I don't know, I think maybe…" she shrugged.

"What is it?" Spencer asked with a frown.

"I just think Emily still has feelings for Alison and I know it's selfish at a time like this but… I just want things to be how they were," she finished quietly.

"Ask her about it, Aria," Hanna said gently, "Just be direct. I'm over all these damn secrets all the time, they only ever get us into trouble," she paused, "Hey, here she is," she nodded her head towards the door.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late," Emily smiled a little as she sat next to Aria.

Hanna smiled, "How are you holding up?"

Emily blinked at the directness of the question, "Oh, I'm… okay, I think. What about you guys?"

"Still kind of in shock, I think," Hanna shrugged.

"Yeah… hey, do you think I could talk to Aria alone for a bit?" she turned to Aria, "Is that okay? I don't want to drag you away fr – "

"It's okay," Aria nodded and followed Emily to a separate table, "Are you okay?"

Emily nodded, "Oh, yeah, I'm okay. You know, considering. Um, are you alright?"

Aria smiled, "I'm okay."

An awkward silence followed.

Emily drew in a deep breath, "About the other day, I never asked you properly, um, exactly what you heard…"

Aria bit her lip before answering, "I don't know, um, I heard Ali goading you… something about how you were always keeping her secrets… she said she never told you not to tell me she was back," Aria paused, "You just knew not to. You sounded mad at her for putting you, all of us, through hell…" she shrugged.

Emily nodded, "That's pretty much the gist of it," she confirmed, "But I have to tell you something else from the night before."

Aria nodded and waited.

Emily bit her tongue for a moment, "We kissed. Ali and I, we kissed. I mean, she kissed me but I kissed back. I'm really sorry. I know that doesn't mean much and you have every right to hate me and to be angry at me so it's all I can say… I'm sorry."

Aria watched her fiddle with her fingers nervously, "I don't hate you," she said quietly, "And I'm not really angry… or maybe I am a little. I'm more just…" she sighed, "It just sucks because I really like you, Em… and I'm trying to understand this…thing you and Ali had because it's so confusing to me. All I know is you really love her…"

Emily nodded, "I really like you too. I do," her brow furrowed as she tried to voice her feelings, "The thing between me and Ali confuses me too. We were never together. I thought it was all one way but I don't think that anymore."

Aria felt her blood turn cold, "She has feelings for you too…"

Emily shrugged, "I don't think she knows what she feels. But I think… I think I'm finally ready to move on. Whether you still want to be with me or not, I'm ready to stop pining for her. To live my life."

Aria watched Emily's face contemplative, "Em… I want to be with you," she took Em's hand gingerly, "I just want you to be sure. I don't want to have to worry if Ali comes back that you're just going to ditch me. I don't want to be second choice, a consolation prize because she's not here."

Emily looked at her wide eyed, "No, Aria you're not second choice. I really did love Ali, I'm not going to say I didn't, but it was such a toxic relationship. It wasn't healthy for either of us. I didn't want to admit that… but when we spoke alone and she realised it too, it was such a relief to just have her as my friend again. We hugged and there was no poison or angst it, just two friends… " she paused, "It's not like that with you. When we were friends, you were great. We always had fun and I could talk to you. And now that we're more than that, you just lift me even higher. You're there for me more than ever and when I'm around you I just feel…good. You're beautiful and I don't think I've told you that enough lately."

Aria sat silent through her girlfriend's speech, "Thank you," she said quietly, "I just want to take things…slowly, okay?"

Emily nodded, "Okay," she let out a breath she hadn't realised she was holding, "That means I can kiss you though, right?"

Aria let out a soft laugh and shifted her chair closer to Emily's, laying a hand on her girlfriend's neck, "Sure," she murmured, not giving Emily the chance to make the first move as she closed the gap and kissed her girlfriend lightly on the lips, "Ok, now I wish we weren't sitting in the brew."

"What happened to slowly?" Emily giggled.

"Practicing my French is still slow," Aria claimed, joining her girlfriend in a fit on giggles.

"Ah, well," Emily grinned, "French is very, very important," she kissed Aria again for a little longer this time, "You want to go catch a movie?"

"You mean in a dark theatre?" Aria asked knowingly.

Emily smiled sheepishly.

"On one condition," Aria proposed

Emily nodded, "Sure, what's that?"

"Buy me some popcorn?" Aria grinned as she stood up and tugged Emily out of The Brew.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Argh, today is my last day of holidays so I might not be able to update as much anymore :'( but hopefully I can haha. Enjoy :) thanks so much to everyone who reads and reviews!**

**Chapter 15**

Aria felt Emily shift in the seat beside her. She kept eating her popcorn. She was kind of full but she knew as soon as she stopped that Emily would take her hand. She always did that. Aria thought she could just push this whole Ali thing out of her mind and move on with Emily. But less than two hours after they'd made up, she was starting to think she was wrong.

"I have to go," she mumbled, placing the popcorn on her seat as she stood up in the middle of the movie.

Emily frowned and ran after her, "Aria! What's going on? Are you okay?"

Aria turned around to face her, "I'm sorry, I just…" she paused, "I thought I could do this but I just keep thinking about you and Ali."

"But I thought we were okay, I thought – "

"And I thought we were together but you kissed someone else," Aria let out the thoughts she'd been supressing.

Emily didn't know what to say, "I – I know," she started, "But you said before…"

"Well, maybe I spoke too soon," Aria said quietly.

Emily's face fell, "So…where do we go from here?"

"I don't know," Aria shrugged.

"Are we breaking up?" Emily asked wide eyed.

Aria cleared her throat, hesitating, "I don't know," she whispered, "I just need some space right now," she turned around and walked off, leaving a dejected Emily staring after her.

* * *

"Hang on, you guys broke up?" Hanna asked as they sat around the table at the brew the next day.

Aria shrugged, "I don't know. I just said I needed space."

"But why!?" Hanna frowned, "Because of Alison? I wonder why she didn't call me," she turned to Spencer, "Did she call you?"

Spencer shook her head, "No," she turned back to Aria, "But what happened? Why do you need space?"

"She kissed Ali," Aria said quietly.

Both girls looked shocked.

"What, you mean, like when we were younger?" Hanna asked, dumbfounded.

"No, I mean like the other day," Aria answered.

Spencer frowned, "I don't get those two… Does Ali return her feelings? Did she kiss back?"

Aria sighed, "Emily says Ali kissed her but she kissed back. Emily says she's ready to move on, they resolved things and decided to be friends… I thought that was it but I just keep thinking about it and I just keep seeing them kiss…" she shrugged, "It keeps replaying like a bad dream."

* * *

"Em?"

Emily lay on her bed, trying to do some study and looked up to see her friend standing in the doorway, "Hey."

"Hey," Hanna smiled, "Your mum let me in," she sat on her friends bed, "So, um, I just saw Aria."

Emily sat up, "Oh. Yeah? How is she?"

Hanna shrugged, "She's ok. Are you?"

"I'm ok," Emily tried to smile.

Hanna sighed after hesitating, "Em, she says you kissed Ali."

Emily nodded.

"Why? I thought you really liked Aria – "

"I do really like her," Emily cut in, "I don't know why, okay? I didn't just have a crush on her when we were younger, I was in love with her."

Hanna's eyes widened, "Are you still?"

"No," Emily answered, "I just want to move on. I just want her to be my friend again without all the toxicity and stress… It's just she'd never kissed me before. I mean, initiated it, she'd kissed back but she'd never initiated it. So when she did… " she shook her head, "I just felt like I was thirteen again," she said quietly, "and all I ever wanted was Ali to kiss me like that so I just…kissed her back."

Hanna nodded, "I guess that sorta makes sense."

"It does?" Emily asked incredulously. She didn't feel like she was making sense at all.

"Yeah, it does," Hanna shrugged, "The timing of it sucks but I mean you apologised to Aria, right?"

Emily nodded sadly, "I did and then I thought we hashed it out but then like an hour later, she ran off on me and said she needed space," she hung her head, "And it sucks because I can't even be mad at her because I know I'm the one who stuffed up. I couldn't even blame her if she wanted to break up, I basically cheated on her."

Hanna hugged her friend, "Just give her some time, Em."

Emily rested her head against her friends chest, "I thought you might hate me," she whispered.

Hanna squeezed her tighter, "Never. I'm friends with both of you and it sucks that you're fighting but I'm not choosing sides. Plus, they're all team sparia so we can be like…team…hanily or something," she laughed softly, "I don't know. Just know I'm here for you, okay?"

"Thanks, Han. I think I need some team hanily right now," Emily mumbled.

* * *

"So…what are you thinking?" Spencer asked her friend tentatively.

Aria let out a deep breath, "Honestly? I have no idea what I'm thinking."

Spencer thought for a moment, "You still like Emily, right?"

Aria nodded, "Of course I do."

"And she still wants to be with you, right?"

"Yeah, I think so," Aria agreed.

"But you're mad at her?" Spencer pressed.

Aria sighed, "I don't know if it's mad exactly… I'm just disappointed. And I just keep thinking how Ali just has this hold over her, like all she has to do is rock up to town and Emily like… reverts to before she even looked at me like that."

Spencer watched her friend quietly, "Didn't Emily say she was ready to move on?"

Aria nodded, "Uh-huh."

"Do you believe her?" Spencer asked.

Aria opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again, to answer, "I want to," she frowned, "No, I do. I believe her."

Spencer watched her carefully, "But you keep thinking about it…" she wondered aloud.

"It's this look in her eye when she speaks about Ali… and the way she looks at Ali… she's never looked at me like that."

Something clicked in Spencer's brain but she had to be tactful about this, "So, what's in that look…that you want from her?"

Aria blinked, thinking for a moment, "Love," she said quietly.

"You want her to love you," Spencer paused, "Because you…" she trailed off.

Aria's brow furrowed as she came to a realisation, "I'm in love with her."


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Emily stretched as she woke up and yawned. Today was going to be hell, she thought miserably. She wished she could just skip but she had a stupid English test. She got ready slowly, feeling groggy. She'd barely slept and she'd been hoping a warm shower would wake her up but it didn't really work.

Finally, she pushed her front door open and started the trek to school.

* * *

Aria yawned as she opened her locker, pulling out her books.

"Morning," Spencer sounded way too alert for this time of morning.

Aria smiled lazily, "Morning," she replied hoarsely.

"You sleep much?" Spencer asked knowingly.

Aria shrugged, "Not so badly," she lied.

"Hey guys," Hanna approached, "What's up?"

"Just dreading this stupid English test," Aria groaned.

Hanna nodded, "Right," she looked around, "You guys seen Em?"

Spencer sighed, giving Hanna a look, "No," she crossed her arms.

Hanna rolled her eyes, "Really, Spence? Are you seriously going to choose sides?"

Aria bit her lip, looking from one friend to the other, "Guys – "

"Emily messed up, Hanna," Spencer shot back, "Aria didn't do anything wrong."

"I'm not saying that Em didn't mess up," Hanna started, "But she's my friend and so is Aria. I'm here for both of them," she turned to Aria, "Really, I don't want to pick sides. You're both my best friends and the situation sucks but I'm not ditching either of you."

Aria smiled, "Thanks, Han."

The bell rang and without another word, Spencer stalked off.

* * *

Emily tried to concentrate on her test, she really did, but it was hard when her ex was sitting two rows in front of her. Next thing she knew the bell had rung and she panicked, looking at her barely filled in test. She groaned internally, she'd barely completed half the test. There was no way she was going to pass.

She gathered up her things slowly, waiting for the others, well Aria, to file out of the classroom. Then she sat back down and pulled her lunch out of her bag. She really didn't want to deal with an awkward lunch period with her friends. If that meant eating alone in an empty classroom… well, maybe things were easier this way.

At least she'd have plenty of time to study, she thought, pulling some books out of her bag.

"Emily?"

Emily looked up and sunk back in her seat, "Miss Montgomery."

"You're eating in here alone?" Ella asked.

Emily nodded.

Ella smiled knowingly, "Emily, I don't know what's going on between you and Aria… but I think it would be a pity to let it ruin the friendship you girls had before."

Emily sighed, "I know…I just…It was my fault," she said in a small voice, "Now I'm going to lose my friends."

Ella took a seat beside the younger woman, "I don't think you're going to lose anyone. It might just take some time for things to heal… but your friendship is strong. You just need to give it some time, maybe things will be okay."

Emily attempted a smile, "Maybe."

Ella thought before speaking, "I know my daughter, Emily and she really cares about you. Don't give up on her yet, okay?"

"It's too late," Emily muttered, "She's given up on me."

"Sorry to interrupt."

Emily looked up to see Hanna standing at the doorway.

"I've been looking for you all over," Hanna entered the classroom, "I tried to call you."

Emily looked to her phone, "Oh, sorry, it was on silent."

"I'll leave you girls to it," Ella smiled before looking back at Emily, "Think about what I said, Emily. Your friends aren't going anywhere."

Emily nodded.

Hanna smiled politely before sitting next to Emily, "What's she talking about? Did you think we were going to ditch you?" she frowned, "I told you, I'm here for you Em."

"Yeah, I know," Emily shrugged.

"The others…they'll come around," Hanna said softly.

"Spencer hates me too?" Emily hung her head.

Hanna sighed, "She doesn't hate you. You know how protective she gets… but she'll get over it, Em. We always said friends first, no matter what guys or girls come into our lives."

"Does Aria hate me?" Emily whispered.

"Em," Hanna said in frustration, "Nobody hates you."

"Well, she should," Emily sniffed and it was only then that Hanna realised her friend was crying, "I cheated on her. I'm a terrible person. You should all hate me and never talk to me again," she stood up and began pacing, "I shouldn't get to have any friends ever again. I should just sit in here and eat my lunch alone and go home alone and just be alone forever and – "

"Em!" Hanna took her friends hand to stop her from pacing, "Stop, please."

"But I'm an awful person, I – "

Hanna placed a hand on Emily's cheek, "Emily, stop," she said firmly, "Calm down, please. You're scaring me."

Emily looked at her friend and saw the concern in her eyes, "Sorry," she said quietly.

Hanna nodded and pulled Emily down into a nearby seat, "It's okay. Sh, it's okay," she cradled Emily against her, "You're okay. It's going to be okay. You have to stop beating yourself up, Em."

Emily nodded, choking back sobs.

"Let's get you out of here," Hanna offered a hand, "You've done your stupid test, let's just go to my place and watch a movie."

Emily nodded, wiping her eyes as she stood up, "Okay," she agreed weakly. All of a sudden, her eyes felt heavy. She wanted nothing more than to lie down and let them close so she could just stop thinking and feeling for a few hours.

* * *

Aria managed to push the front door open with her hip with her hands preoccupied with numerous shopping bags.

"Someone's been busy," Ella laughed as she helped her daughter with her bags, "Retail therapy, perhaps?"

Aria smiled sheepishly, "Maybe," she shrugged, "It's all op shop stuff, don't worry, I didn't drain my savings or anything."

"It's fine, that's a habit you may have inherited," Ella smiled, "I spoke to Emily today," Ella followed Aria into her room, putting the bags down and taking a seat beside her daughter on the bed.

"You did?" Aria frowned, "Why?"

"I ran into her eating alone in a classroom… she looked miserable," Ella explained, "Not dissimilar to the way you've been looking lately."

Aria shrugged, "We're… taking a break."

"I noticed," Ella nodded, "But what does that mean, a break? Are you broken up?"

"I don't know," Aria mumbled, "She… she hurt me a lot, mum. She did something bad and I thought I could just forgive her but I kept on thinking about it for days…"

"And now?" Ella asked.

"I love her so much… and I know she didn't mean to hurt me…," she sighed, "I really miss her mum."

"Well, from what I saw she misses you too," Ella smiled, "Why don't you talk to her?"


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, they're really encouraging and I love seeing what people want to happen or who they see Emily with! There's some emaria happiness coming, don't you worry :) oh also, i keep meaning to share my youtube channel where i make way too many pll cracks, ok cool it doesn't let me show links lol, just search "noplacelikestorybrooke" and it will come up :) thanks guys =D**

**Chapter 17**

Hanna woke up with a start, sitting bolt upright in bed. She squinted in the dark, trying to find the source of the noise that had woken her up so suddenly.

"Ali?" she said incredulously, "Jeez, what the hell? It's the middle of the night."

Alison shrugged, "I know, the cover of darkness," she sat on Hanna's bed, "How is… everyone?"

Hanna rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, "Emily's crap if that's what you mean."

Worry flashed through the blonde's eyes, "Why? What's going on?"

"Why are you here? Why didn't you just go to Emily?" Hanna asked, still trying to shake the sleep from her brain.

"I didn't want to complicate things with her and Aria," Alison said quietly.

"Too late," Hanna bit her tongue the moment she said it.

"What do you mean? What's going on?" Alison pressed.

Hanna sighed, "Em told Aria that you guys…kissed. Now Aria's upset and Emily's…"

"She's what?" Alison asked.

"She's just really down on herself," Hanna said quietly, "She hates herself for hurting Aria and screwing things up."

"Oh," Alison sighed, "But you're taking care of her, right?"

"Of course I am," Hanna shot back quickly, "Ali, why are you here? What about your sister – "

Alison shook her head, "Nothing but dead leads," she shrugged, "Do you think they'll get back together?"

"I'm fine by the way, thanks for asking," Hanna rolled her eyes, "I don't know. Maybe. They still like each other… they don't need any more… complications."

Alison nodded, "That's why I came to see you, remember?"

Hanna smiled, "Yeah, right. How long are you around?"

Alison shrugged, "I should go before the sun comes up… Just…" her shoulders slumped, "take care of her, okay?"

Hanna nodded, "I will, Ali. Don't worry, she'll be okay," she paused, "I can tell her you said hi."

Alison hesitated, "You probably shouldn't tell her I came by," she muttered.

Hanna sighed, "I'm not going to keep secrets from her, Ali. That's your game, not mine."

Alison thought about protesting but decided against it, "Okay, well then tell her I said hi," she said quietly.

Hanna nodded, "Ali… we all miss you. You know that, right?"

Alison smiled tightly, "I miss you too, Han."

Hanna crawled out from under the covers and hugged her friend.

"You're doing the right thing," she whispered as Alison hugged her back, "It's nice to see you really care about someone."

"I always cared," Alison claimed, "I just wasn't great showing it."

* * *

Emily sipped her coffee slowly as she walked to school waiting for it to kick in. She rubbed her hand over her face as she walked through the doors. Her feet dragged along the ground.

"Emily?"

She looked up to see her swim coach.

"Hi," she said.

"You missed swim practice this morning," the coach said slowly, surprised that Emily seemed to have no idea what she was talking about.

"Oh," Emily remembered, "I'm sorry."

"Second time this week… is everything okay, Emily?" the coach asked.

Emily nodded, "Sure, I'm just… distracted. I'm sorry, I'll be there next time."

"Okay," the coach looked unsure, "I'm here if you need to talk, okay?"

Emily attempted a smile, "Thanks."

She closed her eyes and rested her head against her locker, letting out a heavy sigh.

"Emily?"

Emily groaned as she opened her eyes but quickly stood up straight when she saw Aria approaching.

"Um, hey," Emily shifted on her feet nervously.

"Hey, I was thinking…maybe we could have lunch and talk?" Aria seemed just as nervous as Emily.

Emily sighed, "I can't," she said sadly, "I – "

"Oh, okay," Aria turned away.

"No, I mean I want to," Emily said quickly, "It's just I have to re-sit that English test at lunch. How about after school instead?"

Aria frowned, "You failed the test?" she asked, "But you know the book inside out."

Emily shrugged, "I was distracted," she offered as the bell rung, "Um, after school?"

Aria nodded, "Okay. The brew?"

Emily smiled, "Sure."

Aria smiled and turned away.

Emily bit her lip, hesitating, "Aria?"

Aria turned back, "Yeah?"

"I really miss you," Emily said quietly.

Aria smiled, "I miss you too."

* * *

Emily felt lighter throughout the rest of the day. At least she had something to look forward to. Something to hope for. She knew she'd passed the English test this time and her foot jiggled up and down as she watched the clock through her afternoon classes. She was nervous. Hopeful but nervous. Aria had smiled at her and it made her heart flutter. She'd said that she missed Emily too. Surely that was a good thing?

Still, she tried not to get her hopes up. She wanted to be with Aria more than anything, but right now she'd be thrilled just to be on speaking terms. She missed her best friend. The bell rung and she was the first out of her seat, still shoving her books in her bag as she walked out of the door.

Fifteen minutes later, she spotted Aria sitting alone at a table in the brew. She took a deep breath and approached.

"Hey," she smiled.

"Hey," Aria smiled as Emily sat down, "How'd the test go?"

"Oh, fine," Emily nodded, "I passed this time."

"That's good," Aria looked genuinely happy for her, "Um, I'm going to order, you want something?"

"Oh, yeah," she fished out some coins, "Just a green tea, thanks."

Aria smiled and went up to the counter.

Emily closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Everything was fine, she told herself, polite. They weren't fighting at least, that was a good sign, right? It had just been a while… they just needed to get over the common courtesy crap.

"Here you go."

"Thanks," Emily smiled, "So, um, how have you been?"

Aria shrugged, "Okay, I guess," she hesitated, "I've been thinking about us a lot," she said quietly.

Emily nodded, "So have I. Um, what are you thinking?" she asked, playing with her fingers anxiously.

Aria hesitated, "Well… at first, I just couldn't stop seeing you with Ali. I was jealous… and it hurt, Em, that you could do that to me, it really hurt. I didn't know if I could trust you anymore."

Emily smiled sadly, "I understand that. I never meant to hurt you… but I know I did. And I'm sorry, really sorry."

"I know you never meant to hurt me, Em," Aria said softly, "And I know you're sorry. I just needed some…processing time, I guess."

"And now?" Emily asked.

"I just really miss you," Aria whispered, "And I really can't see my life without you."

Emily nibbled on her lip, "I really miss you too, Aria. And I really want to give us another go… if you're up for it. I understand if you're not, I just hope we can go back to being friends."

Aria smiled, "I don't want to be just your friend, Em. I want to try again," she took a deep breath, "Emily… I'm in love with you," she finished quietly.

Emily was shocked and opened her mouth to reply but nothing came out.

"It's okay," Aria smiled, "You don't have to say it back. I know things have been complicated for you, us…everything."

"Sorry, you just surprised me," Emily offered weakly.

Aria shrugged, "I know," she took Emily's hand, "It's okay. I know what you and Ali had was intense… I don't expect you to just be over all that. I know it's not that simple, even though I wish it was."

"I really care about you, you know that, right?" Emily insisted.

Aria grinned, "I know and right now, that's enough."

She lent forward and closed the gap between them, her fingers still tickling Emily's palm as their lips connected softly, briefly. Emily's eyes fluttered as she raised a hand to Aria's cheek. They locked eyes for a few moments before smiling.

"You wanna go for a walk?" Emily asked, looking around at the quickly filling café around them.

Aria nodded, "Yeah, let's go," she stood up and offered her hand.

Emily grinned and let her hand fall into Aria's as they left the brew.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Sorry for the wait! I'm on holiday at the moment in beautiful New Zealand so haven't updated quite as often as usual! However, I am back in Australia (my home country) on Wednesday :( so things will go back to normal! Here's the latest installment, enjoy! And for those of you who haven't discovered it yet, I've started a new fic - Cece/Emily! I swear I ship this girl with everyone except who the writers put her with... (MINUS MAYA! EMAYA OTP). And I don't know what the plan for Emison is so let's just not even...ugh.**

**Chapter 18**

Aria pulled away from her girlfriend reluctantly.

"I should go," she sighed, looking towards her front door, "Curfew and all."

Emily fiddled with the ends of Aria's hair, "Too soon," she murmured.

"I know," Aria smiled, "But I'll see you tomorrow," she checked her watch, "Less than twelve hours."

Emily nodded, "I'll come by in the morning, walk you to school?"

Aria grinned, "Good, I've missed our walks."

"Me too," Emily agreed, "You know what else I've missed?" she asked, placing her hands on the smaller woman's hips.

Aria bit her lip, "I think I can guess," she giggled.

Emily kissed her gently at first, before pulling her close and deepening the kiss. Aria breathed softly into the kiss, laying a hand on Emily's cheek. Her fingers skimmed across Emily's jaw before settling around the back of her neck. Emily's hand was curled loosely in Aria's hair as her tongue eagerly explored the inside of her girlfriends mouth. Aria's tongue pushed back against her own and she let it enter her mouth.

The two wanted to stay in the moment forever but when Emily began to feel a little dizzy, she figured she should probably get some air into her lungs and withdrew.

"Yeah," she breathed, "I definitely missed that."

Aria smiled, "Me too," she sighed lightly, "You're gorgeous."

Emily blushed, "Thanks," she mumbled, "I should let you go before your mum busts us."

Aria looked towards her house, "Yeah," she supposed, "I think she'll be happy though. She told me you guys spoke. She encouraged me to speak to you."

Emily nodded, "Your mums so nice," she smiled.

Aria nodded, "I'm lucky," she agreed and a concerned look came over her face.

Emily frowned, noticing the change, "What is it?"

Aria squeezed Emily's hand, "I just need to ask you for something."

Emily nodded, "Of course. Anything."

Aria hesitated, "Have you seen Ali since – "

"No," Emily shook her head, "I haven't. I promise."

Aria nodded, "And if you do, you'll tell me right? Promise?"

"I promise," Emily replied, "But nothing's going to happen or – "

"I know," Aria smiled, "But I still need you to tell me."

Emily wrapped her arms around Aria and squeezed her tightly, resting her head in the crook of her girlfriends neck.

"I will, I promise. No secrets," she whispered.

Aria nodded, running her fingers through Emily's hair before she sighed, "I really better go now, Em."

Emily untangled herself from Aria, "Yeah, of course," she kissed her lips quickly, "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight," Aria stood on her tiptoes to kiss back.

* * *

Emily and Aria turned around as there was a squeal from behind them.

"Han," Emily lost her balance as Hanna put an arm around each of her friends, "Why do you have to make that noise?"

Hanna looked at her and rolled her eyes, "It's my happy noise, duh. You guys are holding hands again!"

Emily laughed and pushed Hanna away playfully, "Well, we were until you decided to jump in the middle of us."

Hanna laughed, "Oh, right, sorry," she grinned, "I'm just happy."

"Well, we appreciate your happiness," Aria chuckled as she took Emily's hand in her own but sighed, "I better go though, I've art on the other side."

Emily pouted, "You're always going," she complained.

Aria kissed her lips quickly, "I'll see you at lunch, pouty," she kissed her again and dropped her hand, speeding off into the distance.

"Cute," Hanna smiled.

Emily smiled sheepishly, "Thanks for being there for me, Han, you know through all this."

"That's what friends are for, Em!" Hanna exclaimed, "You don't have to thank me. Though I did see this designer dress – "

"Ha ha," Emily rolled her eyes, "If I was rich, I really would buy you anything, Han," she said quietly, "I know I stuffed things up but you didn't turn on me. Or Aria. You didn't pick sides. I really appreciate that."

Hanna nodded, "I know. I'll always be here for you, Em. You kill someone, I'll dig the hole!"

Emily groaned, "Extreme, much? Don't say that!"

Hanna laughed, "It's just an expression," she shrugged, "So… Spencer still hasn't spoken to you?"

Emily sighed, "Not really. I mean, Aria spoke to her, told her we're back together but I haven't seen her since."

"It'll be fine," Hanna insisted, noting her friends nervousness, "We'll see her at lunch and she'll be fine, okay?"

Emily nodded, "Sure."

Hanna took a deep breath, "Sorry to ruin the mood but I gotta tell you something."

Emily frowned, "What is it? Is everything okay?"

Hanna nodded, "Yeah, everything's okay," she reassured her friend, hesitating, "It's just… Ali came to visit me the other night," she said, watching her friend closely.

Emily's mouth opened before she was ready to speak, she licked her lips, "Is she okay?"

"Yeah, she's alright," Hanna said, "She just wanted to check on things, that's all. She said to say hi. I promised her I'd tell you."

"Why didn't she come see me then?" Emily wondered.

Hanna rolled her eyes, "Really? Because, her words, she didn't want to complicate things between you and Aria."

"Oh," Emily's shoulders slumped.

"Em? You okay?" Hanna asked.

Emily nodded, "I'm okay," she smiled half heartedly, "I just miss when things were less complicated," she explained, "If you see her again, will you tell her hi back? And that I miss her… but I understand why she's staying away and I appreciate it but if she needs anything, then she can definitely come to me and – "

"Oh my god, I feel like I should write this down," Hanna interrupted.

"And to stay safe," Emily finished.

"I'm sure she knows all that but yeah, I'll tell her if I see her again," Hanna agreed, "I don't know when that will be though."

Emily smiled, "Thanks."

"Are you going to tell Aria?" Hanna asked tentatively.

Emily nodded, "Yeah, of course. No secrets."


	19. Chapter 19

"You're walking so slowly," Aria noted, dragging her girlfriend through the halls.

Emily sighed, "Sorry."

Aria frowned, "What's up, Em? Is it about Ali's visit to Hanna?"

"Oh, no it's not that," Emily shrugged, "Maybe I just don't want to go to lunch," she paused, pulling Aria into an empty classroom, "Maybe I just want you all to myself."

Aria studied her girlfriend's face, "Maybe you're a wuss."

"What?" Emily frowned.

"You're scared of Spencer," Aria said knowingly before sighing, "Em, she'll be happy for us."

Emily looked at the ground, "She's barely spoke two words to me since we broke up..."

Aria squeezed Emily's hand, "So what's the plan, you're going to avoid forever? That could be kind of hard you know."

Emily shrugged, "I just feel so good about being with you and I don't want anyone to make me feel bad about it," the words tumbled out in a rush.

Aria smiled as her hand found Emily's cheek, "I feel good about being with you too. And Spencer is our friend, if we feel good then she'll be fine with it."

"She's always so protective of you," Emily mumbled.

"I know," Aria nodded, "But she wants me to be happy. You make me happy. End of story."

Emily nodded, "Okay, okay."

Aria kissed her lips quickly, "Plus I'm hungry so can we please go to lunch now?"

Emily chuckled, "You're only hungry because – "

"Oh, shut up," Aria swatted her girlfriends arm, "Vegetarian diets are just as filling as your carnivorous ways. That argument is not valid."

Emily giggled, "Whatever you say," she followed Aria out of the classroom, "I'm hungry too," she admitted.

"Ah, well that's because you don't eat enough veggies," Aria poked her tongue out.

"I eat plenty of veggies, thank you very much," Emily pouted, "And I am not a wuss by the way!"

Aria laughed loudly, "You are but that's okay because you're also adorable."

Emily kissed Aria's cheek as they approached Hanna and Spencer and sat down.

"Hey guys," Aria chirped as she unwrapped her lunch.

"Hey, we thought you weren't coming," Hanna smiled, "Did you sneak off to make out somewhere?" she bounced her eyebrows.

Emily blushed, "No! We were just talking," she shrugged.

"Talking, uh-huh," Hanna coughed.

"Is everything okay?" Spencer asked concernedly.

"Everything is perfect," Aria smiled widely.

"Good," Spencer smiled, "Hey are you guys doing anything tonight? I was thinking Friday night slumber party in the barn."

"Yes!" Aria exclaimed loudly.

"Well, that was enthusiastic," Spencer laughed.

Emily laughed, "Our parents are kind of limiting the sleep over's at the moment," she explained, "But they say group sleep overs are fine. And so I echo… yes!" she kissed Aria quickly.

Hanna rolled her eyes, "Sounds good, Spence. Isn't your dad coming back to town this weekend Em?"

"Yeah but not until tomorrow," Emily said, "We're having dinner with him then."

"Does he know about you guys?" Hanna asked, "It's been a while since he's been in town."

Emily nodded, "I've spoken to him. He's fine, I think. He says Aria's a very sweet girl," she smiled at her girlfriend, "But it will be nice for him to see us as a couple."

* * *

"And the other girls are going to be there?"

Aria rolled her eyes, "Yes mum, that's why it's at Spencer's barn."

"Okay, okay," Ella put her hands up, "I do have to be a parent sometimes, you know."

"I know," Aria smiled.

"Speaking of which," Ella said slowly, "Are you and Emily…"

Aria frowned, confused for a moment before it hit, "Oh my god," she blushed furiously, "Mum," she groaned.

"What? I'm your mother, if you need the sex talk…"

"It's not like I'm going to get pregnant," Aria pointed out, "And Emily hasn't been with anyone so none of that std stuff either."

"So you are – "

"No!" Aria exclaimed, "We haven't…no."

"Okay," Ella smiled, "Well just take your time, don't grow up too quickly, okay?"

"Okay mum," Aria replied, hoping by just agreeing she could shut her mum up.

"I mean it, Aria, there's no rush for these things. You want to be really sure before you take that step, even if you've known Emily for a long time. It's different going from friends to partners, especially where sex is involved."

Aria nodded continuously, feeling awkward as hell, "Uh-huh," she said every time her mum paused.

"And never let anyone pressure you into anything," Ella finished.

"Emily would never do that," Aria protested.

Ella smiled, "I'm sure she wouldn't, but just in case. You have to know your right to say no, under any circumstance. You are allowed to change your mind and you don't owe anyone anything."

"Uh-huh," Aria nodded, "Um, can I go to Spencer's now?"

* * *

Hanna laughed loudly earning a glare from Aria.

"Shut up, Han, it was so awkward," Aria put her face in her hands.

Emily entered the barn and sat next to her girlfriend, "What was awkward, babe?"

"Nothing," Aria said quickly.

Emily tilted her head, "You said something was awkward."

Aria sighed, "Mum decided to give me the sex talk," her cheeks turned red.

"Oh!" Emily bit her lip, "Well that's…" she looked at Hanna who was still cackling and threw a pillow at her, "Shut up, Hanna. Wait until it's your turn."

"Why, has your mum had that conversation with you?" Spencer asked incredulously, it was hard to imagine Mrs Fields talking about sex.

"No way," Emily shook her head, "Jeez, they're just getting to grips with me being gay and having a girlfriend, I don't think they want to even think about me having sex…" she trailed off.

Aria fidgeted in her seat, "Anyway, are we gonna pick a movie or what?"

"Em, are you awake?" Aria whispered to the girl next to her.

Emily's eyes opened, "Yeah, I'm awake," she smiled sleepily.

"Oh," Aria said.

Emily's brow furrowed, "Are you okay?" she whispered, checking that the others were still asleep.

Aria held Emily's hand, "Um. I don't think I'm ready to… you know."

Realisation crossed Emily's face, "Sex?" she asked, louder than she meant to, lowering her voice she continued, "Neither am I! Did you think I wanted…"

"Ugh, mum just made me paranoid going on about not letting anyone pressure me into stuff and all that," Aria sounded disgruntled with herself.

"Well, that's true," Emily said slowly, "And I would never pressure you. But I'm not ready either. I just like being with you right now. We can talk about that when we both feel ready…"

Aria nodded and kissed Emily's lips, "Okay," she whispered and paused, "Em?"

Emily smiled, "Yeah?"

"We could do… other stuff, though… I mean, if you wanted," Aria mumbled.

Emily blinked quickly, "Um… I mean, um, only if you wanted."

Aria bit her lip, "No, only if you wanted because you wanted not because I wanted…" she frowned, not even understanding herself.

"Well, I don't want you to only want to - "

"Oh my god," Hanna groaned, "Can you stop saying want? Clearly you both want to, can you just not do it next to me please?"

Aria and Emily looked at each blushing furiously. Then they burst into a fit of giggles and Hanna pulled her pillow over her head with another groan.


End file.
